Starting All Over
by The Bride of constant Vigil
Summary: Espio loses his memory in a battle, and has to be taken back tlo his origins to relearn about himself, but problems soon arise from an unkown source. Note the some things are true, others arent,  if ever needed I will clarify. Last chapter fixed.
1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note: **

**Look, this is not a main story, just a side one because I believe people should know a bit more about Espio and his background, and for that reason I am writing this story. Note, only certain parts of this story are true, like his mother being…**

**Just remember I don't own any of these characters, they are all owned by Sega, and Archie comics.**

Dark skies filled the air as the rain was pounding down on Angel Island. The robots were everywhere and more robots were swarming the island. "Where are they going," Knuckles yelled as he watched the robots going to the south side of the island. Espio's eyes widened as he recognized exactly where they were going. He shivered a bit before yelling, "They're headed to Rainbow Valley!"

Knuckles had a slight look of surprise. Where is Rainbow Valley? Knuckles looked ahead to see Espio running at full speed in the direction of the robots, so Knuckles decided to follow.

Soon Espio crashed through the last row of trees into a clearing, he was slightly tired, but that didn't stop him from doing his duty to the Floating Island. He saw the robot terrorizing the chameleon community and was pissed to see his childhood town being destroyed.

Terrorized screams could be heard all throughout the town. Espio wasted no time at all springing into action throwing several exploding ninja stars. Espio hit a couple of the robots, causing then to short out and explode. Espio then heard a blood curdling scream, instantly recognizing it as his childhood friend's. "Liza!' Espio exclaimed, running in the direction to where Liza was.

Knuckles who had just made it to the clearing was shocked. He had never seen so many chameleons in one place. Was this where Espio came from? It must be, or else he wouldn't have been so worried, would he have been? Knuckles then saw Espio taking off in some direction, "I wonder what he's doing?" Knuckles muttered to himself.

Espio on the other hand had made it to Liza, who was on the ground choking on her saliva. Espio went and knelt down beside her, Liza then started coughing up blood. She weakly looked up to see Espio and smiled, she hadn't seen Espio in ages, and she truthfully did miss him. Espio looked back to his old friend, and felt his heart sink; coughing up blood was never a good sign.

The robot that had attacked Liza wasn't done though. It held out it's laser and pointed it to finish Liza off. Espio wasn't having this though. Espio got up and stood right in front of Liza, arms wide open ready to take the hit.

Knuckles had started fighting when he saw a huge blinding light, and heard a loud blood curdling scream. He looked over to where Espio was and saw that he had flown about forty feet back through a building, a tree and into a large boulder, causing cracks all around it. Knuckles looked back to see a pink chameleon screaming and chocking at the top of her lungs. Knuckles then looked to Espio, expecting him to easily get up, and get back to fighting, like normal, but the chameleon didn't move.

The pink chameleon, Liza, had gotten up and ran over to where Espio was laying while Mighty took out the robot that had attacked them. The rest of the Chaotix finished up the job quickly, and then went over to their unmoving teammate.

Liza held Espio's head on her lap, running her fingers on his scales. She couldn't believe what had just happened; Espio came back, risked his life to try and save her, and then nearly died because of it. Yes nearly, she would not accept the fact that he had died the first time she saw him again. The rest of the Chaotix soon came to the chameleon's side, and saw the chameleon still unmoving. "Is he-," Charmy started, but was soon hushed by Vector.

Julie-Su, being the smartest in the group, before Espio, had her pointer and middle finger to Espio's temple. "He's still alive," she stated softly.

Liza hadn't realized this, but she had let a tear slip from her eye, she felt the tear run down her cheek, and then watched as it fell on Espio's cheek. Knuckles then looked to the pink chameleon. "Do you know where his family resides," he asked her. Liza shrugged, "He's not from here," she replied. "But I do know where he is from, and I can take you there if needed," she concluded.

"WAIT YOU'RE THAT GIRL THAT GOT ROBOTICIZED, I REMEMBER YOU…SOMEWHAT," Vector said. Liza just smiled lightly. Julie-Su however, was not having this. "Look it's all fun and good that we all know each other and where we are from, but we need to get him some medical help," she stated bluntly. "She's right," Liza began, "his head is slightly more tender than usual." THis statement got a slight snicker from Charmy, who then reciever two death glares, one from Julie-Su and the other from Liza.

The group quickly raced to the nearest hospital, where they took Espio to the ER. Once inside the room some tension dropped, but new ones arose. Julie-Su had Knuckles hand in hers, and she was trying to comfort the worried echidna. "…it's just he's my best friend, I can't lose him like that…" Knuckles whimpered. "It's okay Knuxie, he will be fine, it's Espio," Julie-Su replied in her most comforting voice.

"WELL NOT MEANING TO BREAK UP YOU TWO, BUT WHERE'S THAT CHAMELEON GIRL THAT CAME WITH US?" Vector asked.

The two looked around in worry. Where was she?

0_o

Liza who was worried sick about Espio, and felt as though it were here fault, had turned herself invisible, and was following Espio into the MRI scan room.

Liza's P.O.V

I can't believe he would do something like this for me. I let out a deep sigh, but then realize that I am invisible, and have to quickly make sure no one heard it. My mind then went back to the last time I had seen Espio, when he had returned with Sonic and his team.

He was so free, but at the same, so obedient. He had followed all of the Bride's instructions, but broken them at the same time, and I honored him for getting away with it. He then went on and continued about his past. Of course, I was in camouflage, so he didn't really see me, but I was still there. The last thing I remember was him jumping up and down, happy that he would get to be with his friends again. I was so hurt when he left; I guess I wasn't good enough for him.

I snapped out of my thoughts, we were at the MRI scan room. I was already frowning, Espio still hadn't woken up, and they were already loading him into the machine. I then felt the coughing fit starting up again, and I had to fight back the urge to cough, and probably spit out more blood.

The lights dimmed, and the machine started to work. By now my throat was burning, and I knew I couldn't stop myself from coughing. I quickly dashed out of the room and back to the waiting room where I started coughing up blood. I had never felt so sick or weak in my life. I heard the doctors come, and I felt myself being lifted and carried away, but that's the last of what I remember.

Normal P.O.V

A few hours had gone by, and the group was finally allowed to visit their friends. Of course, they all went to visit Espio first:

"Hey Es, you feeling better," Knuckles was the first to greet. Espio just stared at the group of people standing in front of him. "Who's Es, and who are you guys anyway?" the chameleon asked looking around frantically.

A doctor who had been standing by looked to the group, and sighed. "Yes, I'm sorry to mention that where Espio had been hit had injured much if not all of his memories, so he's as fresh as a new born baby."

Espio sighed and turned over in his bed, he thought about what the doctor had just said. He had memories, of what? Espio laid there and tried racking his head for answers. "So, exactly, who am I?" Espio asked.

The doctor turned to him and smiled. "You are Espio the chameleon," the doctor responded. "Well where am I from, who's my family," Espio needed to know who he was, but he couldn't remember. The doctor sighed, "I don't know," the doctor answered. "Look," the doctor then said in a low serious tone, "I know it is hard, but you're friends will help you regain your memory," the doctor continued, "Now, I would like to ask you guys to leave so that we can work with Espio."

The group solemnly left the room with Espio, and made their way silently to the room in which Liza was in. Liza was in a much better condition than Espio. She had undergone a mild surgery, and would only have to stay overnight.

"How's Espio?" Liza asked lightly. Everyone bowed their heads silently, "He has amnesia," Knuckles then answered.

The pink chameleon became silent with this shocking news. Knuckles then looked to Liza. "Do you know where he is from?" asked the Echidna. Liza nodded, but didn't say anything. Knuckles then remembered why she couldn't do much more than nod, Espio was part of a ninja clan in the Dragon Kingdom. "By any chance, can you take us there?" the echidna asked ready to take a chance. Liza was silent, "maybe," she muttered after a while.

Knuckles gave her a slight smile before being pulled out of the room by Julie-Su. "Don't worry bud, we're gonna help you get your memory back," Knuckles muttered as a promise to himself.

**Author's Notes:**

**I know for some this is a lot for a first chapter, but I needed to get to the part where they travel to Espio's home land, which will be revealed in the next chapter. Well part of it was already revealed, but soon more will be revealed.**

**I would also like to note that all characters except the doctors belong to SEGA© and Archie Comics©. The places also belong to Archie. You should really read the comics though there's a lot to them.**

**I would like to end this with a fun fact: There are four different ninja clans in the Dragon Kingdom.**


	2. Home

**Author's Note:**

**I know that I am currently neglecting the other stories. But I might slowly be converting to a full blown Espio fan. That's okay though, Espio is pretty cool.**

A few weeks had gone by and Espio soon was allowed to be released from the hospital, so that afternoon, his friends decided to go and pick him up there.

Espio walked into the waiting room, his yellow eyes clouded in confusion, "Hey Es, how ya feeling?" Knuckles asked. Espio looked at his so called friends, who were these people, who was Es? "Uh, my name is Espio," the chameleon stated blankly. Knuckles gave Espio a small smile before saying, "We know Espio, it's a nickname."

A doctor then walked out behind the chameleon. "Look," the doctor stated flatly or what we know as his normal voice, "I think that you guys should consider taking Espio to whoever his parents are, they will be able to help him regain his memory."

The room fell silent. "You guys have been in contact with his parents, haven't you?" the doctor questioned. The Chaotix and Liza's cheeks turned to a bright pink. "Look, no one knows who his family is, I mean I can probably take him to someone who knows, but that's as far as I can get." Liza finally announced.

"Fine then," the Doctor stated, "You guys leave tonight." Knuckles didn't like how this doctor was speaking to him though, "Who are you to tell me how to treat my friend," roared the echidna. Liza on the other hand, knew exactly what to do. "Fine then," She stated, taking Espio's arm and turning to leave. The pink chameleon then left the room. The rest of the Chaotix then followed behind her, Knuckles having to be dragged out by Julie-Su.

(-)_(-)

By nightfall the Chaotix had made it to the legendary Dragon Kingdom. Liza quickly turned around and stuck out her hand. "You five need to wear these, it's a hidden passage to get to our clan, and we can't let outsiders know where it's located." The Chaotix, excluding Espio, unwillingly put on the blindfolds, before they noticed that Espio wasn't wearing one.

"WHY DOESN'T ESPIO HAVE TO WEAR ONE," Vector roared. Vector was violently hushed by Liza, who was fixed on making sure that they got to the hiding spot of the Shinobi Clan before it was completely dark. Espio remained silent the whole way, but since Liza was holding his hand constantly, he also had to resist the urge to blush. Wait blushing, this was completely new to him, he had never felt this way, about ANYONE. Or did he ever feel that way? He wasn't to sure, but he had a feeling that it was a first time thing for him.

Once the group arrived at the hidden location of the Shinobi Clan, Liza told them they could remove their blindfolds. "Look, this is the part that you guys have to do alone, if you can get to the other side, then you can meet with our Bride. Now c'mon Espio, do you remember how to turn invisible?" Espio gave a slight nod, then turned invisible, and followed Liza through the maze.

Espio's P.O.V

Wow…I can't believe this used to be my home. I was blushing more than I ever had, why was I suddenly feeling an attraction to this girl? This was extremely rare, especially for me.

We finally finish the maze and I see a purple chameleon staring through me. I then think of myself being visible again, and I am seen by the woman. Her face softens, as she gives me a sweet smile, but then looks next to me and sees the girl and a look of disdain flickers in her eyes. Was I the only one to notice this, the girl didn't seem to tense up or even care.

"Master," the pink chameleon says bowing, "I brought you Espio, he has lost his memory, and I was wondering if you could send him to his family." The purple chameleon nodded, "Come Espio, I will give you the information about your birth and your parents."

I sighed, gave a small smile, let go of the pink chameleon's hand, and followed the purple chameleon into a small chamber.

Normal P.O.V

"Well Espio, I must admit it has been a long time since I have seen you, and I guess since your memory is gone you might have to spend some time here," started the Bride of Constant Vigil. (If I wasn't clear about this from before. The Bride of Constant Vigil is the chameleon who was sitting in the front.) "Now, since you've lost your memory there are a few things that you need to learn. So you can choose: ninja training, the rules and ways of life of the Shinobi, meditating, or do you want to learn about your family.

Espio stood for a while trying to decide what to do. "Hmm, why don't we start with meditating," the chameleon answered. He wasn't physically ready for ninja training, and he wasn't mentally prepared to meet or well remeet his family.

Constant Vigil calmly pointed to the pillow by Espio and he took a seat on top of it. He looked slightly confused when the other chameleon sat next to him, wasn't meditating a one person thing. "Now do you remember how to meditate, it's not that hard, but I could help you if needed," she stated calmly. Espio smiled at her, "Uh, yeah, can I have some help please?" he asked, slightly embarrassed.

Constant Vigil smiled as she showed him how to put his hands, and walked or talked him through the process. Espio followed all her directions, and felt himself being slightly enlightened. Once the two were done Constant Vigil told him to choose the next thing he wanted to do.

"I want to learn about my family," Espio stated clearly.

(-_-)

Back outside Liza was staring at the place Espio and Constant Vigil had disappeared through. She was somewhat worried because Espio hadn't come out yet.

Knuckles, Julie-Su, Mighty, Vector, and Charmy stormed into the room, all of them slightly beat up and panting. Liza looked back at them and smiled. "I guess you guys finally found your way through," Liza snickered rudely. "Well you could've given us a BIT of help, couldn't you've," Julie-Su hissed, "thank God Charmy can fly, or else we would've all died." Liza didn't answer; instead, she turned her attention back to the door.

"Something wrong Liza," Knuckles questioned, partially worried. Liza kept her gaze on the passageway, "well, Espio went there over an hour ago, and he still hasn't come out." Liza answered.

"Well maybe he's the son of the Bride," Knuckles replied, remembering everything about Espio he could, "I mean it's not impossible." Liza seemed slightly disturbed by that fact, "I highly doubt that, the Bride isn't allowed to have a son more so a child, not only could it prove dangerous, but she should be impartial to everyone," Liza answered. "It's more likely that they are still trying to find his files. It's kinda awkward, but he's one of the few people whose parents aren't known, or dead. They might be in Rainbow Valley, but that's very unlikely," Liza concluded.

Knuckles grunted a bit, but was finally up. "Well then why don't we check on them," Knuckles stated, walking briskly towards the door.

Liza moved quickly, blocking Knuckles way. Knuckles didn't look happy, and was about to duel Liza, when they heard a screaming laugh coming from inside the room. The two stopped what they were about to do, and sprinted into the room.

What they saw, was one of the last things they had expected to see.

(- -)

**Author's Notes:**

**Yep, a cliffhanger for my dear fans =) I am still on an Espio craze, so expect updates to this story to happen more often, until the fangirling dies down. So I hope you enjoy, and please comment/review. I wanna hear what you have to say.**


	3. Mom?

**Author's Notes: I am zooming through this story, but that's because of my five day weekend. When school starts back up again, things will slow down. AKA tomorrow.**

Liza and Knuckles gasped at the sight that beheld them. Espio was sitting on the Bride's lap, being tickled, and dying of laughter.

Knuckles was appalled by the sight. He knew Espio extremely well, and he knew that Espio would NEVER allow that to happen. "What the hell is going on?" Knuckles grunted.

The two chameleons stopped what they were doing and looked at Knuckles. Espio's muzzle turned a deep cherry red when he realized how this might look to them. "Look," Espio stated in his normal voice, only to be cut off by Knuckles.

"I said, WHAT THE HELL IS GOING ON?" exclaimed the echidna. Constant Vigil sighed, "I-I...wait why is the Guardian here? You're leaving the Floating Island vulnerable." answered the adult chameleon.

Knuckles sighed, "l-Look lady I'm here for Espio, and this is one of the last things I would expect from him."

Liza knew what the tone in Knuckles' voice meant for Knuckles and Constant Vigil, and she stepped in front of him. "No offense master, but the actions we have just seen are quite questionable coming from someone of as high of an authority as you." Liza defended, trying to be as proper as possible.

Constant Vigil let out another sigh, "I would think that I am allowed to spend time with my SON," she stated calmly.

The room fell silent, as Liza and the others gaped at the two purple chameleons.

"Wha-Whadaya mean, your son," Liza finally shrieked, only to be hushed by Constant Vigil. "I know I shouldn't have a child, but well, I did. The reasons will stay strictly for me, but now that you guys know that you can't say anything."

Liza nodded, "You have my word of honor. This information will never leave the room," she said, quickly glaring at the others.

Espio stared down, how could he become so weak, even if it was his mother. Well, he thought, she is my- but the chameleon didn't have time to finish his thought, he was being embraced by his mother. He had never felt so weak, and so safe in anyone's arms.

Constant Vigil nodded, releasing Espio from her grip, once again she had a sly smile on her face. It was almost like when Espio had led Sonic and his friends to a meeting with her. "Is there any other information that you would like?" asked the purple chameleon.

Charmy being the youngest and rudest of the group happily piped up, "uh, one, how old is Espio, and two, where are we, and three, why are Espio's cheeks red?" Everyone turned their attention to the other purple chameleon. He just walked through the other set of curtains.

Constant Vigil looked at him, a look of worry crossing her face. She could only guess it was her fault, but she would have to wait and see, something she was used to doing. "Look," she replied, "Liza will take you our guests around, and give them a place to sleep. I'm going to check on him." Charmy who was quite proud of himself once again had a bit to say, "That's right woman, we deserve some respect." This earned a clout to the back of the head from Julie-Su.

Liza nodded, and motioned for the others to follow her. Once they had left the room Constant Vigil went into Espio's room.

"Sorry I embarrassed you, I guess I just miss all those old times, when you were young," the female chameleon said.

Espio looked at his mother and smiled. "It's not your fault that I'm growing up, and I wasn't embarrassed. Or well, that wasn't the reason I was embarrassed."

Espio's P.O.V

Am I really embarrassed of my own mother? I did enjoy being able to sit in her lap, even though I won't admit that to anyone. I wonder what she means by "old times," and, "when you were young," I wish I had my memory more so.

I then look at the woman sitting next to me. I know this isn't her, I know she is a strong woman, or she has to be to lead the Shinobi Clan. Did she really care that much about me? I am so touched knowing that someone can love me the way she does.

"So then mister, why were you blushing?" she asks almost like she was my best friend. I smile at her and then continue to think. Was I embarrassed of her? Or the fact that I was caught?

My cheeks turn a slight pink when I realize the true reason for my blushing. I was embarrassed that the pink chameleon had seen me with my mother. What would she think of me now? Why do I even care so much?

My mother smiled at me, then once again takes me in a loving embrace. "Aw, my little Espio is growing up," she says in a teasing voice.

I playfully throw her off me and whine "Am not!" She just sits there and smiles. "Somebody likes Liza," she teased. "Do not," I murmur, but I know she is right, and that in fact, I do have a crush on that girl.

"Unfortunately for you, she is the most liked girl in the guard, and I suggest not making any moves until you've regained your memory, or at least most of it. Don't wanna embarrass yourself, now do you?" Constan-I mean my mother warned.

I smirked at her, "Wouldn't even try," I answered, watching mother get up and start leaving. "Don't forget, dinner starts at sunset," she says before walking out of the room.

Dinner soon came around, and I have to admit, I was starving. I could literally hear my stomach growling, it was trying to eat away at me, in a way to fulfill its hunger. I force myself up to my feet, and start for where dinner is served. Wait, where is dinner served?

I walk out into the main area where my mother is sitting, just watching. I guess that's why she is called constant vigil, always watching. "Hey mo-," I catch myself before giving away some major information. "Ahem," I clear my throat, "Master, where are we having dinner?"

My mother looks at me; a small sleek smile appears on her face. "I have decided to have a feast to welcome the Guardian and his friends," she replied. I nodded understanding that as a chameleon in the Shinobi Clan it is a big honor and worry to see the Guardian. Hey, I remembered something, is my memory coming back slowly? Or was that what I interpreted from my mother's dialogue earlier.

,=,o

Once I am in the dinner hall I am almost appalled, it is huge, and there are so many chameleons, dare I say it, there might be even more chameleons here than anywhere else in the world. I look around and then am suddenly worried; they aren't even that many chameleons here. Are we really that endangered?

I take my seat next to my friends, remembering how no one is supposed to know who I am related to. Knuckles is the first person to say something, "Sorry about Charmy's behavior earlier," and that is the last thing I need to be reminded of in this point in time. I look straight at the table, and use my arms to cover the top of my head, trying to hide my embarrassment. I can literally hear the smile in Knuckles voice when he says, "I guess Espio is slowly returning to his old self." I try to smile under covering my head, and I know I am able to, but I am still embarrassed.

A few minutes later, I see Liza walking over to my mother, through the space my arms leave. 'Not good,' is the first thing that comes to mind. She's my mother, she knows a lot about me, and worst of all she knows that I am crushing on her. Hmpt. Wouldn't right now be the perfect time to lock myself in my room and kill me…

After talking with my mother Liza takes a seat by us. "Hey," she says as she joins us. I force myself to lift my head, and conceal my actual feelings, acting as though we are just friends. Funny how simple it is to act as though I am unfeeling and solemn, maybe that's why I never experience any actual feelings, do I ignore my feelings too often, are they bunching up waiting to explode? I'm not going to let that happen. I plan on telling someone my feelings.

"HEY ES, LOOK YOUR MO-," I quickly lunge out of my seat and clamp my hand over Vector's mouth, and violently hush him.

I look up to see at least a hundred eyes on me, and silently fall back into my seat. Once I am seated, everyone turns there attention back to my mother, who seems ready to give a speech, or/and kill Vector.

I watch as she clears her throat, and starts to speak, "It has come to my attention that we have a few guests here tonight, and I would like to honor them for all they are worth. First off, we have the current Guardian of Angel Island, Knuckles the Echidna. Do not be alarmed, his father is watching the island while he is gone. Next we have his lovely girlfriend Julie-Su the Echidna, sitting right next to him…" out of the corner of my eye I can see Julie-Su and Knuckles blushing madly, and I am forced to suppress a laugh, "Next we have the Chaotix, which include Vector the Crocodile, Charmy Bee, Mighty the Armadillo, and our very own Espio the chameleon, who is also our Guardian of the Guardian. We lastly have Liza the chameleon, another one of our own, who has also spent some time in Rainbow Valley. It is an honor to meet you all, and personally thank you for all that you have done during this war against Robotnik. And for that reason we are having this magnificent feast. Please enjoy what we have; it is a rarity to have, more so be allowed to, have all this food." With that, mom gives a respectful bow and exits the raised peace of rock.

I then watch as steaming hot plates of food come out and are placed on every table. My eyes widen as I see all this food, I wasn't given half this much at the hospital. I then notice how many people the food has to be shared with, and realize that this isn't half as much food as it looks to be. I give a slight sigh, but am happy to be allowed to eat.

After dinner, I am careful to make sure that no one sees me as I slip into my mother's den. I then go back into my room, and remove my shoes and gloves, and rest my head on my pillow. I guess I hadn't realized how long this day had been because I am almost asleep when my mom pokes my side.

I look up at her, somewhat mad that she had the nerve to interrupt me in my sleep. She smiles at me, despite my glare and says, "Your ninja training with Liza started tomorrow at dawn," she then turns on her heel and leaves. I guess I am too tired to notice what that meant, but it doesn't matter, because within minutes I am fast asleep.

**Author's Notes:**

**And with this chapter, my dear friends, I end the major Espio craze and quick updates. This story is now being pushed back to a minor story that will be worked on from time to time. (Mostly on weekends.) Well I hope you enjoyed the chapter, and I would like to hear what you think of the story. So click the review button, I mean come on, it's staring at you=)**


	4. Training

**Author's Notes:**

**So I hurt my leg, and am dealing with a writer's block for all other stories except this one. I know its strange, but I have a need to write, so therefore I am writing another chapter.**

Espio's P.O.V

…_our lips are getting closer; I can't believe that I am this lucky. Out of all the guys she could've had, she settled for me, me of all people. I close my eyes ready to enjoy this moment, aware of all the nasty glares I was getting from her other admirers. Out of all of them she has chosen me. Within a second our lips touch, and exploding tendrils of ecstasy running through my body. I have never felt this way about anyone, and I am kind of disappointed about that, yet glad. I have finally found the perfect person for me, and she's standing right in front of me. Why do I feel this way about her, Liza of all people? Does it really matter, I'm glad that I love her!_

I wake up the next morning with some drool on my pillow. This can't be happening to me. Is my life really supposed to play out differently now that I'm starting all over? I guess so; I mean I can't really be a young child (I am referring to the previous chapter, when Espio was caught on his mother's lap) at the age of 18, can I?

Wait, I know I didn't wake up by choice. I look up to see my mother standing above me smiling down at me, a small snicker on her face. "You start training today, more so right now, Liza is right outside ready to escort you. Now remember to leave here invisible, we don't want any political trouble, now do we?" She stated calmly.

I let out a groan as I force myself out of bed. Couldn't I sleep for another two hours or so? I slowly trudge past my mother and to the door. I concentrate for a moment before turning invisible and walking right out of the room. It's a pity that I can hear my mom giggling in the background. I ignore her though, and walk over to Liza, who is standing patiently near some door. I walk up to her before allowing myself to become visible again, and I see her jump as I catch her attention.

"Sorry," I mutter, too tired to do much else. Liza on the other hand smiled, "Someone needs to get used to waking up at the crack of dawn. Not only is it the best time to meditate, but it's also an excellent time to train." She explained opening the door.

I look through the door and am appalled by what I see. A training dojo stands before me, with different types of dummies, targets, and obstacle courses. I let out a heavy sigh as I realize, this is not going to be easy.

I look back to Liza, hoping to get the slightest look of sympathy, but all I see is the eager look in her eyes, as she pushes me through the door. I stumble onto my knees, but get up quickly, hoping that no one has seen me. Liza is still smiling, and I wonder if this is a joy to her.

I look off into the distance to see none other than the rest of my "friends" standing there and staring at me. A look of pure torture must cross my face, because I notice that they are smiling. This is not going to be a pretty morning like I had hoped it would be, would it?

Liza then led me to the rest of the group, and started to explain everything that was going on, "Okay," she started, "As you can see, I have this entire place booked for the next **five **hours. Because of the feast from yesterday, I thought it would be quite simple for you guys to skip a meal today." That caused Vector to let out a tortured groan. "We will start with a half hour of meditation. Or at least Espio and I will, you are free to join us, but if not, you can start warming up. After the meditating, we will do our warm ups for thirty minutes. After the first hour we will work on speed for forty-five minutes, accuracy for forty-five minutes, then combat and strength for thirty minutes each. Lastly, I will personally train Espio on stealth for an hour. After that we will just meditate for another half an hour, and we are done." All of us except Julie-Su's eyes bulged at the list of things to do, and we all let out a simultaneous groan.

Julie-Su and Liza snickered, "Boys," Liza giggled, "tell me about it," Julie-Su replied, before walking off to their chosen stations.

Normal P.O.V

Espio nodded to the other guys, "wish me luck," he muttered. "Good luck," Charmy said good naturedly before following Julie-Su. Espio gave another sigh and walked over to Liza.

Once seated on a pillow Espio was tempted to go back to sleep. Liza who had noticed all of Espio's negativity smiled at him, "I guess someone's back to their old, life-hating self."

Espio ignored the comment and sat in a position ready to meditate, he was just about to start when Liza asked him a somewhat insulting question. "You do remember how to meditate, don't you?" Espio looked at her, borderline of a death glare and nodded. He then went back to focusing, with his left hand straight, and his right hand in a fist punching his left hand, Espio started to meditate.

After the thirty minutes of meditating and the painful warm ups, Espio was ready for his speed training. "So who am I racing," asked the chameleon cockily. Liza shook her head, and pointed to the row of about 30 obstacle courses. "You aren't racing anyone, each obstacle course gets tougher, and with each one you get less time to complete them in. To pass the speed section of your ninja training, you must pass ALL the obstacle courses." Liza taunted. Espio grunted, he knew this was not going to be easy, but he wasn't sure how hard the task would be until he started it.

The first obstacle course Espio had a minute and fifteen seconds to finish. All he had to do is run across a barbed wire net that was slightly burned and had fake lava coming out of it. Espio tried to be swift and get through the course quickly, but the barbed wire kept tripping him. Eventually though, Espio crawled out with a time of 1:11. The only problem though was that Espio was cut up and bruised from the course.

Liza was slightly uneasy, but was urged by Espio to let him go on. Liza sighed as she turned on the next course. It had a normal ground, but it had the normal swinging axel type of course. "You have a minute and ten seconds to finish this course." Liza stated blankly, trying not to look at her friend. Espio nodded and dashed into the course. It was quite easy to get through, especially if you're like Espio who has a strategic mind. Espio went through that course in 50 seconds, which caused his friends to celebrate.

The tracks kept going, and Espio was starting to lose his edge. Soon the forty-five minutes were up, and Espio had completed 17 obstacle courses. Liza looked petrified when she saw Espio panting. "C'mon Espio, you have another three hours and fifteen minutes to go, you can't be out for the count yet," Liza whined. Espio then looked at the girl with a smile on his face, "I'm just getting started," he replied.

Liza smiled, "Alright, then your next thing is accuracy." Espio nodded, and started looking for what he would be throwing. Liza giggled again, "Silly, come here and let me show you where you keep your-," Liza stopped herself before telling everyone one of his secrets. The chameleon nodded and walked over to Liza. Liza then took Espio's arm, made sure no one was looking, then pulled out a ninja star from his glove/hidden bracelet compartment. Espio looked at the star somewhat shocked, but then immediately understood what she had just done.

The two went back to the rest of the group and Liza explained, "Okay now, this is the accuracy test. All you have to do is hit the exact center of each target, note the targets will get harder to hit." Espio nodded, and shockingly, quickly finished the entire accuracy course. Liza smiled at him, she was pretty shocked, then she remembered that accuracy and speed had always been Espio's specialties. Well along with stealth, but he was a chameleon of the Shinobi Clan, so that was a given.

Combat and strength went by in a blur, Espio not passing either of them. The chameleon was gasping and panting for air. Was training really that hard? Liza looked to the rest of the Chaotix, and they too were doubled over and panting, even Julie-Su. Liza giggled, "Training isn't as easy as you guys think, eh. Well its ok you guys are done, c'mon Espio, we have some stealth training to do."

Espio let out a groan before following Liza somewhere else. The rest of the Chaotix decided to leave the room because they were way too tired to stay.

"So how do you practice stealth?" The chameleon asked. Liza smiled, "By going around scaring and spying on people." Espio looked slightly worried, knowing that he could get into a lot of trouble for spying on people, but was slightly comforted by what Liza said, "Don't worry, these are all prechosen people, who won't be doing anything awkward. Well all except these two, which you have to catch together and report back to me."

Espio nodded and went off, he was extremely good at stealth, and then it came to the last people. It was Knuckles and Julie-Su that he had to spy on. He then walked into the room they were sharing, and climbed up a wall and spied on him. What he saw was something he never wanted to see. (And because I am not changing this story to M rating that's all you need to know) Well as soon as Espio saw what he thought was going to happen the chameleon silently dashed out of the room.

Espio reported back to Liza when he was done. Liza had a few laughs, and when she asked about Knuckles and Julie-Su Espio became silent. Liza smiled, and put one hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry they didn't do anything, that was staged too, don't ask me how far they went, but it's good to know you're reliable. You have passed my test." Liza stated. With that she hugged Espio from behind.

Espio smiled but did not let his actual feelings show. "Well we just have thirty minutes left of meditating, and you're free to do whatever you want," Liza said.

Espio and Liza then sat in their beginning seats and began to meditate again. Once the two were done they left the dojo, and went outside, just to walk around. Espio was tired and repeatedly stumbled over himself, while Liza stood there and laughed. "I don't remember you being such a klutz," Liza teased, helping Espio up after he fell again. Espio gave a deep sigh and forced himself up, only getting minimal support from Liza.

0_o

Around noon Liza was ready to go back, Espio on the other hand was enjoying the sun. The two were resting next to each other, their backs propped up against a tree. Liza was telling Espio about the old times they spent together, and Espio was trying to absorb as much information as possible. Liza got up and stretched herself out. Espio got up next to her but looked reluctant to leave. "C'mon Espy," Liza whined, "It's almost lunch time."

"You can go, but I'm not hungry," Espio replied. Liza on the other hand tugged his arm, "C'mon Espio, before you completely return to your old morbid, locked-up self," Liza groaned. Espio gave her a sly smile, "I'm not going," he replied. "I promise you I'll be back for dinner." Espio stated. Liza smiled back at him, "Then I'll stay with you, you're not getting rid of me that easy," she joked. Espio blushed lightly, and looked away so that Liza couldn't see the pink.

(^^)

Dinner time soon came around, and once again Espio sat with his friends. Mighty and Vector had done their snooping and had caught Espio and Liza together, so Liza was in a heated debate with Vector over what was actually going on. Knuckles and Julie-Su were trying to joke with a solemn Espio about what was going on, and Charmy was being his hyper self, poking Espio in the side. It was obvious the purple chameleon was losing his temper.

Espio then decided to get away before he exploded, storming out of the cafeteria. Liza sighed, she did have worries about him, and he was her best friend, even if she wasn't his. She was deciding whether or not to go after him, she was about to go too, when she noticed Mighty, Vector, and Knuckles tearing off after him.

Knuckles P.O.V

I can't believe Espio just lost his temper like that. He's reverting back to his old ways, before he was allowed to open up to his friends. Why is he acting like this?

I hear a slight sound coming from my left, and I sprint to catch up with him. Man this training must've worked wonders because he was moving like the wind. I finally give a last jump, and I have him under me. I get up then pull him up, and I see a few tears running down his cheek.

"Hey Espio what's bothering you," I ask as calmly as I can. Espio gave me a long sigh, "It's complicated." He stated. He then turned around shaking my arm off him and walked off. All I could do is stand there and stare, what was bothering him. Well ya know, besides him not having the slightest clue of his entire life. I let out a sigh of my own before gathering Mighty and Vector and heading back to the dining room.

I take my seat and immediately feel Liza's eyes on me. There is definitely something going on between them. "Do you know what's bothering him," Liza asked. I couldn't really answer her, so I said what I could, "he didn't tell me anything. You can try, but I don't expect you to get much out of him." Liza let out a small sigh. "I think he just has to find himself…again," she stated, before leaving the cafeteria.

I look over to Julie-Su and offer her my hand. I smile as she takes it, and lead her to our room, and go to sleep.

Espio's P.O.V

I'm sick of being so confused about everything. I just want it all to end, I want to leave, and I don't care about Liza! I silently start ranting, cursing, and muttering under my breath. I then feel a supportive hand on my shoulder and turn around to see my mother. She smiles down at me, as she leads me back to my room. "Are you ok," she asked, "I saw you storm out of the cafeteria, and then Liza came and told me that you were depressed."

I force a smile to cross my lips, "it's just hard," I reply. She nods, and I guess she knows that I didn't give her the full truth, but she's okay with that. I turn invisible as I near the door to her room; thank God everyone else had better things to focus on.

I then quickly make a turn and head to my room. "Don't forget that you have training again tomorrow. Same time tomorrow, don't worry I'll wake you," she called from behind me.

I once again close my eyes, and try to will myself to sleep. I end up staying awake half the night, and then fall asleep.

**Author's Notes:**

**So as you can see, Espio is slowly losing his grip on reality. Personally I don't think he ever had a grip on reality to lose, because he was so lost. Hmm, so about next chapter, well you'll have to read it to find out. I just want you to know, I have good plans for this story, and I can't wait to get much much deeper into it, because then I'll let you in on this little thing. **

**Oh well, for now just please review. Good or bad, I want to hear what you have to say. **


	5. Tough Day

That night Espio had no dreams. Instead, he was rocking back and forth, suffering from all that was currently happening. He hated it, and he couldn't even tell what was bothering him.

Morning only came too soon as Espio was violently shaken awake by his mother. "Morning sleepyhead," she joked. Espio gave his mother a death glare; he was still very tired, and was almost dragged out of bed.

Espio walked up to Liza, not even bothering to leave his own room invisible. He could really care less if he was caught or not, he just wanted to rest.

Liza smiled at her friend, "Are you ok," she asked in a comforting voice. Espio glared at her, and Liza looked slightly worried by what he might do to her. "S-Sorry," sputtered the female chameleon, slightly scared.

Espio realized that he had hurt her and replied, "Sorry," flatly. Liza knew Espio wasn't truly sorry, but she pretended that everything was okay and walked into the room, holding the door for Espio to follow.

Espio's P.O.V

Ugh, so much work to do. Can't they see that I'm not in the mood? I walk into the room and see the same thing I saw yesterday. My friends are already bright-eyed and bushy tailed, warming up on with the dummies and sparring each other. I let out a loud and long sigh as I gravitate towards the meditating pillows.

I take a seat and watch as Liza takes the pillow across from me. She nods towards me and we start to meditate. Meditating, being that I am supposed to be completely at peace is hard for me to acquire. Instead, I manage to fall over and fall asleep. Liza who soon notices me asleep and isn't happy at all, and she starts hitting me with the pillow. I just glare at her and she glares at me. How dare she have the nerve to glare back at me? No one ever has that sort of nerve.

I let a low growl, hoping that would tell her to let me rest in peace, but she just hit me with the pillow again and gave me an even nastier glare.

I look over my shoulder to see Vector and Charmy struggling to hold in their laughter, and I feel even worse. Honestly, I am tempted to leave this dojo right now and go to my room.

I turn my attention back to Liza, who seems like she is getting sick of using a pillow on me. She squats so that we are at eye level, it's funny how she tries to look threatening with eyes that are so pretty, but she gives me another glare. "Look Espio, I don't know what's gotten into you, and why all of a sudden you are acting like this, but you better pull yourself together before I lose my temper. You're acting like I don't have better things to do then just teaching you how to become a ninja AGAIN, have you forgotten the code of the Shinobi?"

Liza started lecturing. I let out a sigh, feeling guilty for what I did; I am not use to having to wake up so early. "YEAH," Vector said adding his two cents, "YOU'VE HAD MANY SLEEPLESS NIGHTS, A COUPLE MORE SHOULDN'T HURT YA." I look down in shame, how could I be so shallow. True, I am very tired, and would love to have some rest, but I have other priorities that I must accomplish before giving myself self-satisfaction. I then force myself to my feet and look over at the obstacle course. Today would not be fun at all...

My last statement held true saying that I only got through two obstacle courses. How could I fail so badly as to only get through two? Am I that tired? I look down myself once and see new cuts and bruises forming. I look over to Liza, hoping to see the slightest form of sympathy on her face, but I guess she is still mad from earlier because she doesn't even glance at me.

Next is supposed to be accuracy, but I already passed that. Liza didn't seem to care though, "Accuracy is something you need to continually practice so that it doesn't lessen. Remember accuracy is not a skill that once you learn you are good for life, but instead one that has to keep being reinforced." Liza preached. I remained silent and nodded, knowing that if I step out of line again Liza will kill me.

I start pulling out my ninja stars and kunai(s) and am prepared to throw. My aiming as normal is perfectly accurate, and I smile to myself. I might have lost my memory, but I haven't lost my skill. Accuracy once again goes by in a breeze and that means combat is next.

Combat isn't really the hardest, but at the same time it isn't easy either. Combat is me sparring my friends after Liza shows me martial arts. I have already beaten Charmy, and that means my next competitor is Vector, who easily beat me yesterday.

I channel my anger towards my fighting, and to everyone's surprise I easily flip Vector onto his back. I'll admit anger has always been a good source of fuel for me, I can just feel it. Next however is Mighty, who repeatedly throws me against the mats and the walls. I then wait patiently and allow him to make the first move. After he made his first step I was able to use his strength against him by attacking while his guards were down, ya know, because he was about to attack. After Mighty is Knuckles, and I kinda wonder why the girls are left for the end. After learning from my mistakes with Mighty, taking Knuckles was a breeze. When the echidna came to pick me up I held on tight, so instead of him throwing me, I used the force he was spinning me at to knock him across the head, knocking him unconscious. After Knuckles, my combat training was done for the day and it was time to move on to strength.

The Shinobi believe that the way to outer strength is through inner strength, or at least that's how Liza puts it. I, on the other hand, don't get it, if that's the truth then how come I have to keep myself in one handed handstands for extended periods of time. Liza had explained it to me that if I focus my inner energy then I'll be able to hold myself up. I've always sighed and waved off what she said, and ya know what, I'm going to continue that until she tells me what the real trick is.

I walk over to the balancing poles, easily climb up the second one (remember that this is a clan of chameleons who have no problems scaling walls) and get to the place where I'm supposed to balance. I then hear Liza call out to me, "Espio now you need to hold yourself up on your fingertips."

I looked back down at her, and I nod gruffly acknowledging that I see her. I then make my right hand into a cup, and balance myself on the top of the pole. At first, I have no problem, but as time goes on, I feel my arm wobbling, and soon I lose balance completely and fall the ten feet to the hard ground.

Ugh, you don't know how painful falling that far onto a rock ground feels until you've done it more than once. And trust me; I have fallen off those stupid poles more than once. Liza looks at me again, she extends her hands towards me and I use her hand to pull me up. She gives me a faint smile and tells me, "Good Espio that was nineteen minutes and thirty-five seconds. Unfortunately, you still have another eleven minutes," she tells me. I sigh and start crawling back up the pole. I then clothes my eyes and focus, and I finally somewhat understand what Liza means, for I am easily able to hold my own body weight, and I feel much more relaxed. "You're done," Liza calls out from behind. The shock of hearing her makes me lose my balance and I come falling down and hit the ground. I let out a low groan of pain as I hit the floor.

Liza ran towards me and checked to make sure I was ok. I don't know why, but my head really hurts, especially that one part that Liza keeps touching. I can feel myself wincing as her finger touches my skull. Liza also sees that I am wincing and pulls me up. I then feel slightly dizzy, but shake it off and nod towards Liza telling her that I'm ok. Liza on the other hand looks worried. "Espio I think we should take you to the doctor," she states in a low cautious voice. I immediately think of the time spent in the hospital, definitely something I don't want to re-experience. I hate feeling helpless.

I quickly shake my head no. "I'm fine, I swear. I can continue, no problem," I beg. After that I realize how young I sound. Do-do I act older then I am?

I could see my friends' eyes on me; I could also see the disbelief on their faces as they stare at me. "What," I whine a little. I look over my shoulder and see Charmy deciding whether to continue staring at me or do something else. Liza looks back at me and smiles weakly. "Ar-are you ok?" she stutters and I can hear her trying to stifle a laugh.

"Most certainly," I reply, regaining my composure. "So, shall we continue?" I ask.

Liza gives a low long sigh, that only I hear, while the rest of my friends clear their mind from what they just heard. Liza then grabs my arm and leads me towards a secluded area of the dojo. Once there she released my arm, and I could tell that she was worried. "Espio," she whispered, I guess I wasn't paying attention to her, but when she said that I snapped back to attention. "Yes," I replied with an equally low voice. "Well, right now would technically be the time in which we would train your stealth, but saying that you hurt your head I would say we skip that and meditating. You should really go to the hospital. I know you don't like it there, but you need help." Liza explained. I wanted to say no, but, the concerned look in my eyes rolls me not to debate with her. "Fine," I mutter.

Liza giggles, and I glare at her, "What?" I whine again. Liza just continues to giggle. "You are way too arrogant for your own good. Man are all guys like that?" she teased. I felt my cheeks turn slightly red and I feel bashful. Liza giggles again. "C'mon," she says in a calm playful voice as she takes my arm and leads me towards the hospital, wherever that is.

Once at the hospital I am immediately taken into a room. I mean seriously, is all this necessary for a tiny bruise?

There are a number of exams that they make me take, most of which I fail... I can't believe I actually failed those tests. I see Liza out of the corner of my eye shivering, and I want to reassure her that I'm okay. I also want to tell her that her sympathy is not needed, and that I indeed will heal. Liza doesn't seem to care though. I guess she's used to me acting like that by now.

Liza's P.O.V

I can't believe I allowed him to train in the conditions he's in. I knew he had a mild concussion, and yet, I just pushed him. I forced him to continue, I didn't even give him a choice. What type of a person am I? The Bride trusted me with her ONLY child, and I could've killed him.

Those thoughts weren't the worst though. Espio lying there unconscious on the hard stone and all of us knowing that he isn't going to wake up is the first thing that comes to mind. Then I see the Bride with tears in her eyes, she starts weeping, and everyone finds out that she has broken a law to have Espio. I see two guards come and drag her away, taking her away to imprison her. Then lastly there is me, the killer. I'm just standing there staring at Espio, and then they tell me, "You are no longer part of the Shinobi Clan, you have killed one of our own. Not only that, but he is the one watching the Guardian." I then felt two arms grab me from behind and start carrying me away. "Knuckles, Julie-Su," I plead, but they look at me as if I'm not worth it, "We trusted you, not once, but TWICE," Knuckles started. "He trusted you more than any of us did, he really cared about you and you let him down." Julie-Su finished. I was then completely dragged away and thrown into a cell. I continued to whine, I was then pounding against the walls begging them to let me go. I slumped onto the ground and started screaming random things in Japanese. I can't believe I let that happen.

"Liza-," an all too familiar voice calls out to me worriedly. I open my eyes and am shocked to see that I am in Espio's embrace. What surprises me however is that he is still standing. I can feel him trembling and struggling to hold strong, but he was still there, whispering in Japanese to calm me down. I had never heard him speak so calmly, I was never so nicely spoken to, I hate to admit it, but it touched my heart, I bet in even blushing.

I stop crying and look up at him. He's so sweet, I'm so lucky to have him as a best friend.

I see the doctor come to take Espio to a different room, and I nod as they take him away from me. I smile as he is seated on some sort of special chair (wheelchair) and is rolled away.

I then remember that we don't have an MRI machine and I know that he is going to be taken to the mainland. I let another tear fall down my cheek before I turn and leave the room.

At first I don't know where I am going. I am calm and let my legs take me wherever. I end up leaving the caves part of the mountain, and I see the mail chameleon running up the hill. He nods at me and hands me a letter. I let out a sigh and continue to wherever I am taking myself. Up ahead I see the meadow, I brought Espio up here, the first day after training. Or well I brought him to the outskirts of the meadow. It's so beautiful here; it kinda reminds me of Rainbow Valley. Oh how much I miss it there. I look at the letter. It's from my real parents, rather than the fake ones I received when I joined the Shinobi. They are still nice people, but I rather have my real parents.

Espio's P.O.V

It must be about mid-noon, and my head hurts like hell. I grunt as I force myself out of bed and walk towards the door. I hear voices coming from my mom's room, and I guess that means the meeting is going on. I sigh and decide to meditate, it's a perfect way to calm myself, and since I can't leave the room or make any noise, it's the best I can do.

I meditate for a while, and when I'm done I see something white under my bed. I grab a sheet of paper, open it up and read it:

_-Today, Espio once again used his invisibility to interrupt my class. I was trying to teach the children how to turn invisible themselves when Espio turned invisible and sprayed me with paint. I am disgusted by the way he acts and demand immediate change. _

I couldn't help but snicker, and decided to pull a few more out. I opened the next one and began to read it when I heard my mother's voice, urgent but quiet. "That's the third kidnapping this week, and the eighth this month," she whispered. "We need to do something, we can't let this keep happening, our clan is small as is," she continued. I slid towards the wall to listen to her better. What's going on?

"What shall we do Master," another concerned voice asked. "Well this person needs to either be a ninja, a chameleon, or a master of disguise," that means we need keen eyes looking out for us," mom explained. "What about that chameleon boy that returned? It could be him. I mean he has no memory of what his life was like, maybe that's just a decoy," explained a female with a very stern voice. Other complaints arose about me, and I couldn't stand to hear it.

I walked straight through the door, angered by what everyone was saying about me. The minute I walked through the door the room fell silent. My mother seemed angry, but I couldn't see her by the rage I was going through. Finally, someone broke the silence. "Why is he here?" came an invisible voice.

Everyone's head turned and we watched as an orange chameleon appeared before us all. "Ahem Gordon, why are you here, you are supposed to stand guard outside," mom explained. "And Espio, you are smart enough to hear a conversation, so why didn't you stay in your room?" mom asked. I felt my cheeks turn slightly red and I had to turn away as to not see the shame in her eyes.

Gordon looks at me with a sneer on his face. "Yeah Espio," he snickered, "Why didn't you?" he teased. I looked back to my hand and saw the paper I had been reading. I began to read the paper again. Hmpt, I started to snicker, and I see Gordon glare at me. "What's so funny?" he asked.

I hold up the tiny detention note for him to see. "Well apparently, when we were in kindergarten, we got into a fight. I came out unscathed, but unfortunately for you, you ended up with a black eye, a couple broken ribs, bite marks, and other cuts and bruises." I couldn't help but laugh at what the note read. It was Gordon's turn to hide his face, and I continued my little snicker.

I then caught sight of the others face, some were still glaring at me, others were trying to suppress their laughter. "C'mon Espio," my mother urged, "Read more." I looked back to my hand. "But how do you know about these. I hid these from you," I complained. Honestly, it didn't take a genius to put that together. My mother smirked after I said that, "A mother knows her son," she said in a lax voice. Heads suddenly shot towards my mother. Did she realize what she just said? She didn't seem to care though, instead she was calm. Gordon's eyes seemed as they were about to pop out of his head as he quickly looked from my mother to me. "Master?" a confused and concerned voice asked. My mother turned calmly towards the voice and nodded. "Yes, Espio is my son. The other elders knew, and decided to keep it a secret, so we will continue to do so." she replied in a stern tone. She then looked at Gordon, "And you," she said in a stricter voice, "I know you and my son aren't exactly friends, if you even peep about this-" Gordon cut her off, he was shaking, "I understand ma'am." Next she looked at me, her face softening greatly, "Now Espio, you cannot use this as an advantage over Gordon, because this is supposed to stay secret." I nodded, and let a small snicker escape my lips, "Don't worry mom, I already have enough of an advantage over him." I responded cockily.

Gordon was pissed, his face was bright red, and he looked as though he might kill me. I smiled at him knowing I was untouchable, and I'm guessing he knew the same thing to because he quickly calmed down. "Well Espio, there's just one last thing I want to show you." I watched as he pulled out a box and opened it. "I don't swing that way," I immediately replied. Gordon sneered at me, "I know that, plus who would want to date you?" I went back to looking through my detention notes; he was starting to bore me. "It's for Liza, I plan to propose tomorrow," he continued in his annoyingly cocky voice. Quite a few gasps escaped mouths, but not once did I lift my head. "Good for you, I hope you two are happy together," I reply in my normal emotionless tone. Gordon seemed slightly amused, so I continued, "I mean Liza and I are just friends, that's to the extent I like her, if anything more I look to her as a sister. My biggest concern of anything going on between you two is that you'll take advantage of her, or treat her improperly. As long as you treat her how she deserves to be treated then I am happy for the both of you." Everyone stared in shock at what I said for a moment, even my mother; I just nodded at them all, and watched as Gordon left the room. I smiled and went back into my room to let the meeting continue.

All through the meeting the thought of Liza spending her entire life with him made me sick. She could do so much better, and though I hate to admit it, I wish she would do better with, with me. Do I really like her? Even worse, do I love her? I can't be falling for her, like I said she's my friend, the type I want to keep close, but not in a way in which we are dating. Maybe I don't love her, maybe it's just the need to always be better than Gordon that keeps me attracted to her. Only time will tell, and maybe, just maybe if I talk to her things will be easier.

**Author's Notes:**

**Well that's the chapter, just another problem for Espio who is trying to regain his memory. Thank God tidbits of it are coming back. **

**Well I might neglect this story for a while to work on my other stories. Maybe not...but before I go I need to tell you 1 I have enhanced many of the chapters and 2 I have made a mistake on Espio's age. I said that he was 18, when in fact he is Knuckles age (in the comics that's 17 for those who don't know). I came to this conclusion after learning that Espio is 16 in the games, the same age as Sonic and Knuckles. So he is 17 just like Sonic and Knuckles are in the comics. Everyone else's age will be supplied at the beginning of the next chapter.**

**Just one last comment, please comment and review, I would really like to hear what you have to say about this story.**


	6. A Midnight Meeting

**Author's Notes:**

**Okay as I promised, here are everyone's ages in the story:**

**Espio: 17**

**Liza: 16**

**Knuckles: 17**

**Julie-Su: 16**

**Vector: 21**

**Mighty: 17**

**Charmy: 6**

**Gordon: 18**

**Constant Vigil: 35 (explanation in later chapter)**

**Well that's about it for now, so now to the chapter. Note: they are at dinner.**

**Espio's P.O.V**

I arrived early at the cafeteria planning on how to ask Liza to speak with me. I already know this isn't going to be easy, or comfortable. The last thing I want to do is to let on to her that I **MIGHT** have a crush on her. How would that affect our friendship?

I sit with the rest of the Chaotix, lucky them; their biggest worry seemed to be how I'm recovering. "Are you okay," Mighty asked when I sat down. "THAT WAS A PRETTY HARD FALL YOU HAD THEIR, AND WITH YOUR CONCUSSION AND ALL. YOU COULD'VE DIED," Vector announced. I am about to do a facepalm when I see Liza walking up to us. I look at the expression on her face, and I can tell she is still pretty shaken from earlier. I try to smile to her to show her that I am fine, but she seems too consumed in her own thoughts to care that much.

"Liza," I whisper so that only she can hear me. She turns her head to face me, her bright green eyes sparkling with tears. I can't help but feel as though some of this is my fault, but I know that blaming myself, or anyone in that case wouldn't be helpful in the least. Liza still seems on the borderline of tears, and since I know I am terrible with words, I just rub her back. Yeah, I am terrible with things like that… I believe Liza was even slightly uncomfortable. I let out a deep sigh, which once again catches the girl's attention.

"Espio, are you sure you're okay," whispered the girl. I smiled at her, "I'm fine," I reply, "I just don't want you to blame yourself for something you didn't do."

For a second I swear I see a real smile on Liza's face before I hear the song that has been sung way too often lately. "Liza and Espio sitting in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G" Mighty and Charmy were singing. I gave the two a quick death glare, a warning of what might happen if they don't shut up. The two quickly heed my warning.

Dinner soon comes around, and while we are eating I get my chance. "Hey Liza," I call out to the girl, while everyone else seems to be in deep conversation. Liza looks to me with a faint smile on her face. She is so pretty when she smiles. "Yeah, what's up," asks the pink chameleon. "Well, I was wondering," I started, but was quickly cut off when Gordon came and took a seat right in between Liza and I (major cockblock!) and started talking with her. Liza seemed to be enjoying the conversation, so I lay low, I mean look at her, and she's smiling that smile I kinda like…

I clear my throat loudly enough so that Liza and Gordon notice me. Liza feeling rude explains, "Oh Espio, this is my boyfriend Gordon. Gordon, this is my best friend Espio." I let out a small grunt, "We've already met," I mutter under my breath.

I look back to the rest of my table and see that they are all silent and now watching us. Mighty, Charmy, and Vector seem to be trying to suppress their laughter, which pisses me off because they know that I like her and they find the fact that she has a boyfriend funny.

"Well, that's great you two already know each other. In fact, I'm willing to bet that you guys are quite good friends. You seem to have a lot in common," Liza said, she seemed to be only halfway paying attention to everyone else.

"Well, quite the contrary babe. Espio and I have been enemies for as long as I can remember. I don't even get how you could be friends with a **BULLY **like him." Gordon stated loudly. Many people gasped, and now most, if not all eyes were on me. This didn't surprise me in the least; information is everything within the Shinobi.

"In fact," Gordon mused, "When we were younger, Espio used to beat me up because I wasn't as good as he was. Ask the teacher and the doctors, they know how heartless he really is. That's probably why he became Guardian, so that we didn't have to deal with him beating everyone up. I bet you he didn't even lose his memory, and he's the one behind all these kidnappings."

I was boiling in my seat, resisting the urge to punch him. But I knew that's what he wanted me to do; he wants me to prove him right. I won't though, even if it kills me. I look around at everyone; even my mom is looking at me with disdain. I'm am hurt.

"Honestly, Liza, honey, you shouldn't be getting mixed up in people like him. He's quite capable of hurting you. I don't even see why he is still part of the Shinobi; he's probably going to become an assassin. C'mon Liza, let's get you out of here, we don't want you mixing with him. You already have enough problems trying to fit in, not being born here and all. Hanging out with this goon isn't going to help your complexion at all," he then started pulling Liza to her feet and away. I could not stand another bad thing happening today, and unless something happened. I was going to lose my temper. I turned invisible and quickly ran out of the room.

**Liza's P.O.V**

I honestly don't believe anything Gordon said. I know Espio, and I know he is sweet and caring, even if he has a hard and cold posterior. If only I knew where he stormed off to...

I look at Gordon; he looks as though he is triumphant. I can't believe he did that. "How could you," I shriek at him. I could feel tears starting to run down my cheek. I can't even look at him. I quickly turn around and try and find Espio, leaving Gordon in a state of shock.

**XXX**

I finally reach the meadow, even though it is freezing cold, and in the meadow, I see a slumped up figure sitting in the flowers. "I knew you would be here," I stated, the wind howling behind me.

Espio looks up, and I see the remnants of a few tears on his cheek. "Are you okay?" I ask, feeling even worse than I did when he fell. I slowly walk towards him, and plop down next to him. I feel his scales brush against mine, and I can tell he must be even colder than I am. I wrap my arms around him, hoping to warm us both up. "I'm fine." Espio finally mutters, but I can tell he's lying.

"C'mon Espio, we all know he's lying," I plead. Espio shakes his head, and I can still see the depressed look in his eyes. "Not everything he said was a lie, most of the truth out of context, but not lies," the purple chameleon said. "Like how I used to beat him up, I did beat him up, but only by beating him in a fight. I also only fought him when he was hurting me or someone else in the class. Ask any student, why do you think he didn't list them as a reliable source, because they had the entire story in context," Espio told me. I held him tighter, one because we were getting colder, and two because he seemed to have started tearing up again.

Espio decided to lie down and rest his head on my lap. Even though I felt warm, I knew that by doing so he would get even colder. I think he too knew this fact, but was okay with it. I on the other hand wasn't, "Espio, don't try to kill yourself with hypothermia," I called to him. Espio looked up from my lap and smiled. I knew exactly what he was thinking, and I am surprised he doesn't know the answer, _'Who's going to stop me,' _are his exact thoughts. And as if the two of us were having a psychic conversation, I answered in my head. _'Me idiot, I'm not going to let you kill yourself for something that isn't true,' _I replied, _'You and what army,' _was the answer the expression on his face gave me. I lightly slapped him across the face; I guess we were having a mental conversation.

"So Liza," Espio started, "do you remember the first day we met," he asked. I nodded, how could I forget that day, it was one of the best in my life. "Good," Espio replied, "Can you tell me, because I haven't the slightest clue."

I dramatically looked off into the distance and saw Espio's head following mine. "What am I supposed to be seeing?" asked the chameleon impatiently. I sighed, "I just wanted to be like people on TV who look off into the wherever and their flashback randomly appears for all to see," I answered truthfully. Espio snickered a bit, which made me feel better. I then noticed that once again he was shivering uncontrollably.

"I'll make a deal with you," I contemplated, "I'll tell you the story, if you go inside and have some tea with me." I waited a bit as Espio pondered over the deal. "Um…fine," Espio said giving in. I playfully shoved his head off my lap and stood up. Once I was up, I assisted in pulling Espio to his feet, and almost dragged him across the grassy plains until we returned to the hidden location.

I then hauled Espio into Constant Vigils room. She was still awake when I went in. "Um, by any chance, can we have some tea," I said randomly. She eyed me for a moment before I remembered, "Sorry, um…master can we have some tea. We were outside this entire time, and your son is freezing," I replied more honorificy. She nodded and started making tea.

Espio, by now was walking on his own, and led me to his room. It wasn't that big, in fact, it was tiny. He sat on one part of his bed, and me the other. I waited until the tea was made, and we were both comfortable before I started the story:

"_Well, this happened when I was 11 and still living with my family in Rainbow Valley. Valdez, my best friend at the time had just come back from his trip, or well from here, and he seemed extremely happy. He came straight to me and we talked about how things were going. I told him about the most recent marriages, and about how boring it is to be a girl in Rainbow Valley. Funny how that's all I used to complain about. I then told Valdez about all the new guys my parents tried to pair me up with. It pissed me off how strict they are there; even the Shinobi had more freedom. Well, anyways, Valdez told me he had a new mission. I begged and pleaded with him to tell me what it was, but he wouldn't answer, instead, he said, "You'll know, soon enough." He then told me that he was going to need my help for this, and that he wouldn't trust anyone else with something like this. I was so touched, and so excited. Finally I would be able to do something new, be helpful, and even enjoy life. I then continued to beg and implore, I really wanted to know what this top secret mission of his was. After our chat Valdez left again. I did everything I could to try and prepare for this top secret mission. I might even get to leave Rainbow Valley. I was so excited that I started writing a letter to my parents that I was leaving, and probably wouldn't return for a while. Around six o'clock that night, before mom and dad were home, I heard Valdez's secret knock. I quickly ran to the door, ready for the adventure of a life time. Valdez looked around, and saw all my preparation and smiled. "You aren't going anywhere." He told me. Immediately my spirits were crushed. He had gotten me so hyped up, that was like a blow the side. "Come in and make yourself visible," Valdez said. I looked around confused, true when someone was invisible I was technically not supposed to see them, but I still was confused. Then behind Valdez I saw a purple chameleon materialize. He was slightly taller than me, and he had bright yellow eyes. He was trembling though, I felt so bad for him, and he was probably new to all of this. "This is Espio; he is going to be staying in Rainbow Valley for a little bit. I need you to get him introduced into this town and looked upon as a regular." I nodded, accepting my 'mission.' "Espio, I know you better than this, toughen up. Espio, this is Liza, she is going to show you around and show you the ropes of this area." The boy called Espio quickly calmed down, he stood up straight, looking brave and tough, and he had an outstretched hand. I shook his hand cautiously, he seemed nice enough. "Well," Valdez said, "Now that you two are introduced we should be heading back, don't want any trouble do we," and with that the two chameleons left, and little did I know how much my life was going to change…" _

Espio was still staring at me some time after I finished. "Is that really how we met?" he asked. I nodded, "Yep, that was how we met," I replied. "But, who's Valdez, and what happened to him?" Espio asked. I immediately became silent. "Sorry," I heard the chameleon murmur. "I'll tell you at a different time; it's too depressing of a story to tell you at this point in time." I answer.

I get up realizing how late it is. "Espio, I gotta go, my dad's gonna kill me," I say getting up and finishing the rest of my tea.

"Wait," Espio exclaims as I am about to leave the room. "I have one last question." Now he reminds me of an annoying little kid that never stops asking you questions. "Yes," I reply as patiently as possible. "Why Gordon," he asked. I was really hoping that he wouldn't think to ask that question, but I knew that he might as well. I let out another sigh and then spoke.

"Look, unlike you, I wasn't born here; therefore when I first came I was an outsider that no one liked. Then I joined the Bride's Guard, making me one of the few women to be part of it. All the girls then thought I was a whore, and the guys thought I was easy. Gordon defended me against what everyone said, and he tried his best to make me feel welcome. Especially with what had recently happened looming over me like that, I was in no condition to suffer any more hatred. So, thanks to Gordon, I-I-I…So thanks to Gordon people talked to me and acknowledged me existence. That's why I decided to go out with him."

Once I was done Espio nodded. "Well at least you have a reason to," he said in a low voice, "and, if he makes you happy, then I am happy for you. Don't dump him because of the bad blood between us," he said.

What Espio said completely took me by surprise. The only flaw with what he said was that I know him so well I can easily pin point the feelings he's trying to hide. "No need to pretend you're okay with it, but if you don't mind, my dating life is my business, so please don't get involved."

Espio flashed me a quick smile, and I returned his smile. I then left his room, bowed to the bride, and left the area. At first I was walking, but then I sprinted to my room, hopefully my dad won't be too mad with me.

**XXX**

**Author's Notes:**

** Well there is the chapter. I think the story is starting to get deeper. I will announce my surprise, or good news in the one of the upcoming chapters. I hope you are excited about the news too. Well, since I am here I guess I will answer a few reviews.**

**To Silena the Hedgehog:**

**Okay, when you told me Mighty was going to find his sister soon, I literally jumped out of the chair. I am a huge Mighty fan, and I felt so bad for him when he found out about his sister. Funny how most of us know who she is. With the four clans, you are correct and the spelling is spot on. Lastly, I LOVE THE CHAOTIX, and I love reading stories about them. I guess what bothers me the most is how no one really knows about them from the comics, and all the stories are game based. It's really nice to know that there is someone who shares these views with me. K.I.T.**

**To Sky 45:**

**I know that Gordon is annoying, and this chapter only makes him worse, but as you can see, I do have a slight plan of events, and in due time Espio and Gordon will have a fight. Now, about the two getting married, you will understand a bit more about why that is unlikely for this story in an upcoming chapter. Thank you for your review, and I will more thoroughly consider a major fight against the two.**

**For everyone else, thank you for your comments and I hope you keep reading, and enjoy the story. **


	7. A Day Out

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, this chapter is more on Liza's life than anything else, so I'll hope you excuse me. Also, if you don't like Liza then don't read the chapter. Unfortunately, if you don't read the chapter, you will miss the amazing news within the chapter, well at the end of the chapter.**

**Espio's P.O.V**

This morning I woke up on my own, I am actually surprised and proud of myself for that. I easily get out of bed, and walk into my mother's room to see that she is already meditating. I make a quick cup of tea, and then I head out for the training grounds.

Only a few other people are out at this time in the morning, most people are either meditating, or doing their housework at this hour. I look around expecting to see Liza, but she is nowhere in sight. I guess she over slept this morning, we were up pretty late last night.

I guess I should go check on her and see if she's up to the training this morning. I camouflage myself so that I can return to my room without detection. "Mom," I ask, without realizing that she is still meditating. She glares at me with an irritated eye, and I shy away from her, hoping she isn't mad. "What," she hisses very disgruntled. I take another few steps back so that I am at the curtain door.

"I'm sorry mother; I just wanted to know where Liza lives. She wasn't there for training this morning," I tell my mother in a low calm voice. She lets out a heavy sigh, trying to suppress her anger, "She lives in room 43 on the third floor," Constant Vigil breathed. I look at my mother, who seems enraged, quickly thank her and leave the room. Note to self: never disturb mother while she is meditating.

I speed through the halls, looking for any indication of where the third floor might be located. I keep running blindly before I run into Vector. Being that Vector is at least two times my height and weight I am immediately fall backwards. The giant croc barely felt the hit, but he did indeed feel it, and therefore looked to me with an annoyed demeanor. I'm just pissing everyone off today aren't I?

"Hey Vector," I finally ask after a short period of silence. The crocodile held out his hand, which I used to pull myself up. Vector then addresses me, and I realize how early it is. "Vector, why are you up so early?" I ask cautiously. The croc lets out a sigh, "There was quite a bit of screaming going on in the room across the hall from me late last night," he whispers.

I am immediately appealed. I know the Shinobi Clan, and I know any form of abuse is completely unacceptable here. "What? Where?" I ask extremely worried. "Well, I live on the third floor-" Vector started, but as soon as he said third floor I let out a shriek of horror.

**Liza's P.O.V**

Ugh, I can't believe how late it is. Oh no, I missed the training session with Espio. Oh, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have gone to talk with Espio last night. What was I thinking? My father was mortified. I have never seen him so scared or worried. He threw things at me, he hit me, and I have never heard his voice so loud. Speaking of throwing and hitting, I wonder how my cuts and bruises are healing over.

I finally push myself out of bed and walk towards the mirror. My torso is covered in bruises, it really hurts. I can't believe my step father did this.

I look over my chest again, and I put my finger to some of the black and blue spots. I jump back, and quickly remove my hand as I feel how painful the bruises are. I can't go out in public like this; people will know what has happened.

I quickly go into my closet, and search for any jacket I have. Being that I am part of the Shinobi Clan, clothes are quite restricting, therefore, unless you work in the kitchens, schools, or somewhere that doesn't require using any ninja skills.

I find a black hoodie that is at least two times my size. I quickly throw the hoodie over my head and dash out of my room. "Guddo· mōningu· mamachichi (good morning stepfather)," I greet with a formal bow. My step father looks up and nods, even though he looks slightly irked from being interrupted from his meditation. I don't care however and run out of the door.

I speed down the halls until I run into someone and bumping my head. I am in so much pain, and I have one of the worst headaches in the world. I think someone's horn probably hit me square in the forehead. I look up across the hall, and see Espio on the floor in front of me, holding the tip of him horn.

I let out a low snicker at the sight of him in pain. I know its mean, but he's so adorable, he reminds me of a five year old. I quickly get up, and extend a hand to help him. The purple chameleon at first looks at me, but then accepts my hand, and allows me to pull him up.

I notice the look of shock on his face when he sees what I am wearing, and I have to do my best to look unaffected by the stare. After his moment of immediate shock however he moved on to ask the second most stressing question, "Where were you?" he murmured.

"I overslept," was the only truthful answer I could give him, trying to avert the gaze of worry he was giving me. I know he is smart, and that he will probably put two and two together soon, but I don't want him to find out, I don't want him to worry, so for that reason I turn around and start walking off.

"Liza?" the chameleon calls out in a questioning voice. It takes all my strength not to turn back, but I know who I am going to, and I know why.

**Espio's P.O.V**

I watch as Liza walks away, I don't know what happened, but there are a few bruises on her cheek that worry me, so ignoring Vector's snickering, I take off after her. Me, having regained much of my speed easily tackle the girl to the ground. That is when Vector starts dying of laughter, probably pissing off everyone on the floor.

I ignore what Vector is doing, and turn my attention back to Liza. Why did I just do that? Regardless, I help a very disgruntled Liza off the ground, and keep hold of her arm (not tightly or in an abusive way) so that she cannot escape me this time.

"Liza," I ask, even more worry flooding my face. I see Liza trying to dodge my gaze, and I know something is bothering her. For that sole reason I let go of her arm, and if she wants to leave she can.

What she did next however shocked me, and most people who were up this early in the morning. I felt the girl jump towards me in a hug, and then I felt warm tears running down my back. She was crying.

I feel the heat rise in my cheeks, and I knew my cheeks were bright red, and I knew that other people could see that my cheeks were bright red. In fact, I am also aware of the people pointing and snickering, but since Liza can't see my face, I am fine.

I feel Liza push herself away, and look me dead in the eyes. I know she wants to tell me something, but not here, if this is something personal, then we need to talk alone. A small smile must play across my lips because in the next second Liza's cheeks are tinted slightly pink. Her cheeks are now only slightly lighter than her scales, but regardless we need to talk.

I take Liza's hand and I lead her out to where we were talking yesterday. The sun is still coming up, and the sky is a brilliant array of different yellows and oranges. I notice Liza also looking up and enjoying the sky, and I smile as I think how beautiful she is…I meant the sky is.

"C'mon Liza," I say, leading the girl to the tree that we sat under yesterday. We both swiftly take a seat, and I quickly turn to Liza. "What's bothering you?" I ask, cautious not to touch on the fact that she is out of or in untraditional clothing. The girl remains quiet for a little bit, she won't even meet my eyes. She keeps her head turned away from me, and I can't help but feel guilty that she is this way.

I carefully put my hand over hers in a sense of comforting. The girl quickly diverts her gaze so that she is now staring at our hands. She slowly looks up at me, a sense of determination on her face. Wow, all these emotions to say one simple thing. "W-well, I guess it's just what happened yesterday because of the time I got home at. My father was kinda mad; s-so he threw some things at me, and yelled and hit me. But, he's never done anything like it before. I think he was just worried." She quickly added at the end. I had to contemplate this; this girl was just…abused.

"Liza, are you sure you're okay?" I ask as sympathetically as I can, which for once is extremely sympathetically. Liza nods, but I already know that she is lying, because seconds afterwards she burst out crying. "Liza?" the word slips as I wrap the girl in a hug. She is crying on my lap now, and for once I can't empathize.

The girl keeps crying as I watch the sun rise. I occasionally rub her back, and say things like, "It's ok," but I guess she knew as well as I that this was definitely not 'ok.' I truly do hate it when I cannot help someone.

It must be ten o'clock by the time Liza is all cried out. How many tears does a person truly have in them? The girl wipes her eyes, bright green orbs staring at me now. Dear Chaos, please tell me I'm not blushing. I can't even look away for the worry that I might offend her. Chaos, why is everything so confusing?

I get up, offering a hand to help Liza get up in the process. She looks at me in a pleading sort of way; I really hope I am doing the right thing. Liza takes my hand, and I help her up, but afterwards, neither of us let go. I smile at the girl, and I see the first real smile cross her face for today. "Wanna go to the Dragon Kingdom central today?" I ask feeling devious.

Liza at first looks shocked, but then I see her face crack into a grin, "Lead the way," she giggles. I nod and I start leading the way to the main part of the Dragon Kingdom.

**Third P.O.V**

The two arrived in the main part of the Dragon Kingdom fairly quickly, moving invisibly so that no one would notice they were there. "So," Espio said in a low voice so that no one could overhear them, "I believe this is where a battle against two of the strongest dragons took place." Liza giggled, "What blue eyes and red eyes?*" Espio was thoroughly embarrassed. He even made a mental note not to go rummaging through old memories if he was planning to have guests over later. "Shut up," however, is all he mumbled. Liza faked a gasp, "Is that any way to talk to a lady," she asked. Espio sighed, "Yes," he said in a caustic voice. Liza sighed, "Then I wish you luck in dating," the girl teased. The male chameleon flushed red, thank Ra** he was invisible, or else he would be extremely embarrassed right now.

"Well then, I guess that means you don't want to continue the tour." Espio stated. Liza smirked, but then again, you can't see that, "Nope, not really…can we find an open spot and just relax. No wait, let's go back…I feel as if we are being followed." The girl said the last part at a much lower voice. Espio nodded, "I've been having the same feeling," he muttered.

With that the two walked back to the mountains in which the Shinobi resided, both disappointed with their day out being cut short. They were still talking as though they were best friends, which they once again are.

**? P.O.V**

God I hate that stupid chameleon. He thinks he's all that just because he's the Guardian of the Guardian. I bet he doesn't even know what's really going on. These stupid chameleons only think that people are being kidnapped, I guess they would never guess that people were simply defecting from that stupid thing they call a clan. Don't worry though, as of right now, things are working exactly according to plan, we have people on the inside and out working for us. The Shinobi Clan will fall…

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, just a day out for the two, I guess this is more of a transitional chapter than anything else. I hope you enjoyed it though, and as for Liza, she won't be abused anymore, well unless she gets home late again. **

**I would also like to apologize for the tardiness of this chapter; I have had to rewrite it numerable times because my flash drive wasn't saving it. (I try to write some of it in school.) However, the chapter is done.**

**Also, regarding Espio's ever changing age, he is 16. Archie has finally released his age, and I am pissed that it took them so long, I mean he's 16 in the games, but who really believes that.**

***Blue eyes white dragon and red eyes black dragon are two monsters in Yugioh. Espio was a fan when her was younger (and I am one now).**

****Egyptian God of the sun, as looked to in Yugioh terms, Espio acting as a child.**

**Lastly, **_**Reply **_**I need incentive to keep going…**


	8. A Man in the Dark

**Author's Notes:**

**Now, you will find out why I was so nice to them in the previous chapter. I guess this is where a few things happen. This might be the climax, it might not be. I have to decide. **

Espio's P.O.V

Dinner goes on as normal. We eat in the giant cafeteria, and we talk as a group. Well, Liza and I received a lot of teasing from my friends. God, what will it take for them to realize that there is nothing going on between us? Regardless of my wishes, we are just friends.

After of the back and forth bickering Liza and I just gave up, and I just put my head down and listened as the other guys laughed. You know, I am so going to get some dirt on them, and rub it in their faces.

Well...that was dinner.

It is currently past one in the morning and I have been feeling restless all night. I haven't even been able to lay down. I've been walking around ever since.

Being that I guess I'm paranoid, I've checked every little niche and crook in this area, but I haven't found anyone yet. I guess I should calm down, take a small break.

I walk towards the invisible labyrinth, turn invisible, and walk across. Once I get to the other side I make myself visible, and just sit at the mouth of the cave and stare up at the moon and stars illuminated in the night sky.

I smile to myself thinking of how different the sky looks today compared to that of when the overlanders, I mean humans, were the dominant species. There were some people who would look at the sky and make picture, there were others who studied the life and movement of the stars. I turn my head a bit and see another moon, Mobius has 100 moons. I wonder if I will ever see all of them, or even better, all of them at once.

I continue staring at the star, acknowledging the North Star, which is surprisingly still there. I pull one knee up to my chest, while I sit with the other knee straight, using my free hand to trace the patterns in the sky, making my own constellations. I've never understood constellations actually. It's like there are pictures set in stone, I don't believe that they are set in stone; I believe that our mind should be allowed to roam, and think whatever we want.

I draw a heart with my finger then stop when I am done. Am I really this head over heels for the girl, I mean sure, we're close, but we aren't that close, are we? Plus, Liza already has a boyfriend, and she is perfectly content with the boyfriend she currently possess, even if he is an ass.

I shake my head roughly. This is not what I should be thinking about. I don't need to make myself depressed, I'm never actually happy. Instead, I reflect back to that meeting my mother had. People are going missing, and some people think it's me. I guess sitting out here isn't good for my image, but hey, let them think what they want.

I take a deep breath and sigh; I need to prove myself innocent. I need to show everyone that I am a good person, I would never harm anyone. I need to regain my honor.

I continue staring up at the stars, resting my head on the side of the cave next to me. I barely realize that I close my eyes, or that I am lightly sleeping, until I hear a slight sound. To the untrained ear, the sound is probably nothing, but to someone who grew up a ninja, this sound could mean anything.

I jump up and look around worriedly, looking left and right, just to make sure that no one is there. I don't see anyone, but that doesn't mean that I should calm down and relax. I take a deep breath and concentrate. I listen for the slightest sound of breathing or footsteps, but here nothing.

Suddenly, I hear a breathing coming from behind my left ear, and that's when I feel it, a sharp jabbing pain running up my entire body. I feel an incision penetrate through my protective layer of scales, and just nearly miss my spine. I've been stabbed.

I swing my arm behind me, kunai in hand, hoping to maul whoever my attacker is. However, in acting to brash I forgot the first lesson in being a ninja, wait and listen. My mistake cost me dearly because my arm was quickly grabbed, and another thing was jabbed into my back. "That was for flirting with my girlfriend." A voice sneers behind me. Gordon...he's doing this.

I feel another stab in my upper back, and finally let loose the scream I've been trying so hard to keep in. Gordon lets out a low sadistic laugh, and I flinch in pain as he twists my arm behind my back. I then feel his foot against the back of my knee, and instantly I am on my knees. "Pathetic. Look at the son of the bride, bow before me you pathetic excuse of a person." Gordon mocks as I stay on my knees. As soon as he finishes saying that I foot hits me in the back, I fall to the ground, listening to that same cruel laugh.

Gordon bends down beside me, still holding my arm to my back. He continues cutting me, and I glare at him. "I'm shocked, all this pain yet no tears." He states, ripping the knife through my scales. I however will not give him the satisfaction of my pain, so I don't react.

Gordon then uses my arm to harshly flip me over so that I am lying on my back. My back sears in pain, but I ignore it, noticing this is my chance tiger him. Gordon chuckles malevolently as I wince in pain. I guess he is so caught up in his laughing that he doesn't realize that I too have a kunai.

I use the kunai and swipe at Gordon, causing a scratch on him. Gordon glares at me for only a second before starting to cut something across my chest. I writhe in pain, but I don't scream anymore, I am past that.

I continue to cut at Gordon's chest, never really causing much more than a scratch. Gordon then takes the kunai in hand and stabs the arm I'm using to scratch him. I drop the kunai immediately as I watch the volcano of blood he has caused. He then smiles at me writhing in pain, and trying my best to free my arm. I look to my legs, and get an idea to kick him, but he must also notice this because he stabs both my thighs. Gordon smirks at me, and then starts to cackle. "Give this message to your Bride, will you? And don't say it was from me, or else you'll lose Liza." Gordon whispers into my ear. I shudder with rage, but Gordon looks to it as fear because he continues to smirk.

With that stupid smirk of his he disappears, and I am able to take a good look at myself. I look terrible, there is blood spouting from everywhere except my face and tail. The cuts are now overflowing with blood, so you can't distinguish one cut from another, I don't really care however. I need to warn my clan, I need to get inside, I am so vulnerable.

I force myself to my feet, my legs struggling to carry my weight, as I slowly stumble forwards. I look at the invisible field beyond me and I know that I myself don't have the energy or concentration required to turn invisible, in fact, I'm pretty sure I am suffering from blood lost.

I basically crawl through the maze and into the main room. I just need to make it to my mother, I know she can help, I just need to get to her.

My vision is extremely blurry, and I am dizzy beyond relief, my body aches in pain, and I keep involuntarily shuddering. About in the middle of the room I look around and think a bit. Would it really be rational to keep trying. I look behind me and see the trail of blood I have maid, even through the maze. I am so screwed; I might as well not even try.

I lay down closing my eyes. I can live through this, I already know that, but this pain, and it's just unbearable. I let out a deep sigh that I didn't even realize I was holding, and I feel the tension slip away from my body and my mind slip into the darkness. I feel at peace, perfectly content, as honestly, I wouldn't trade this feeling for the world, it's just so...relaxing.

~_0

I slowly open my eyes, and see a blurry white light. Okay, I've watched enough horrors and things like that to know that means I am in a hospital. I smile at myself, realizing how stupid those people are in the movies.

However, the people were right about one thing, and that is that this light is way too damn bright. I try and lift my arm to block out the pain, but I realize that my arm has been restricted. I decide to just close my eyes for a little while, and wait till I have somewhat adjusted to the light, through my eyelids.

It takes a while, but I am soon used to the light, and therefore open my eyes. As that happens, a nurse walks in the room, and she gives me a huge smile. "Kon'nichiwa (hello) Espio-san," The lady says respectfully. My cheeks turn a bit red with the honorific. I, like my mother, have never seen much use for those words. "Kon'nichiwa Kankoshi-san (Ms. Nurse)," I reply, using proper honorifics. The woman gives me another small style before walking up to me and giving me herb tea. I drink it thirstily, and then realize. "Kankoshi-san, Wareware wa doragon ōkoku ni arimasen (Ms. Nurse, aren't we in the Dragon Kingdom)?" the nurse nods at me, and smiles. "I speak English too, if that's what you're wondering," the nurse replies, basically reading my mind.

"Arigatō," I reply softly. She then walks over to me, and helps me into a sitting, somewhat resting my back on pillows position. I thank her again, before she turns around and walks out. She is definitely part of the Shinobi Clan, which is pretty comforting to know.

Now that I am awake, I reanalyze my body. I am basically covered from head to toe in gauze and my hands and legs are cuffed to the bed, making me wonder why I am like this.

Liza bursts through the door, running to my bedside and giving me a hug. She is closely followed by Charmy, who does the same thing. I then see Mighty, Knuckles, Julie-Su, and Vector walk into the room, forming a sort of a semi-circle in which I am in the center.

I look around confused by the glares I am receiving from Knuckles, Mighty, and Vector, from Julie-Su and Liza, I am receiving looks of deep concern, and Charmy is just sitting there dumbfounded. We all sit in this agonizing silence for a bit, while I rack my head for answers that do not come.

"What?" I ask, a bit more defensively then I had wanted. Without dropping his glare Knuckles replies, "Why'd you do this to yourself?" Now I wear the same look of shock and dumbfoundedness as Charmy. Knuckles glare however, doesn't lessen, "Why. Did. You. Cut. Yourself?" Knuckles asks slowly, while putting emphasis on each word.

Now I am truly appalled. "What do you mean why did I do this? I didn't cut myself if that's what you were implying." I state in a firm voice. Now Mighty speaks, however his glare softens, "C'mon Es, we saw the knife covered in blood out in the front. It was a terrible excuse at covering up your tracks." I let out a deep sigh remembering that the kunai I had used to cut Gordon was still there, but I can't tell them, Liza's life is on the line.

I turn to look at the girl standing next to me, and I can see that she is on the borderline of tears, her sad eyes only asking one question. 'Why?' I want to tell them the truth, I truly do, but right now, I need to think of a lie that would actually work. However, as my mind is still foggy from all that blood loss, I can't come up with a good lie.

"Hey," I ask around, regaining everyone's attention. "I-I hurt myself pretty bad...did I need a blood transfusion?" I ask accepting there made up idea of what really happened. Knuckles sighs, now and can't even meet my eyes. "Yeah," he mutters, "Your mother."

I feel my heart stop as I realize what I just made the woman experience. I let out a deep sigh, reminding myself to thank her the next time I see her.

"Why," Knuckles then murmurs. I look over at him, pretending not to know what he means. "What?" I ask sweetly, which only seems to anger him. "You have such a wonderful life, why would you do something like that to yourself? What has happened in your life to make you so ungrateful?" Knuckles asks through clenched teeth. "I don't know," I answer truthfully.

Knuckles quickly turns so that we are once again facing and starts walking towards me, anger evident on his face. Mighty however puts his hand out and stops him, "Knuckles, he's not lying, he's suffering from a minor concussion and amnesia, no matter how little he acts like it." I look towards Mighty with a grateful look in my eyes, and I whisper an apology to both of them. Knuckles heard this and goes completely still, almost as if he had seen a ghost.

Julie-Su looks from him to me and smiles. I however haven't the slightest clue what's going on, do I close eyes. Vector who hadn't done anything finally says, "Feel better Espio, and gain back your sanity," before escorting the others out. I breathe out in contentment after they leave, and am slightly disappointed that my friends don't believe me, but my thoughts are interrupted when there is a small knock on the door.

The door opens slowly, and it is now my mother who stands in the doorway. She takes one look at me, and looks back down in disappointment. I already know what she's thinking, and I already surrender to her beliefs.

"Who did it," she asks lightly. I feel shock run up my spine, she knows it wasn't me. "I-I can't say," I reply shakily, very unsure of how to approach the issue at hand. My mother looks up, and I can see the single tear that she has allowed to be released. I can't help but feel bad, I made my mother cry. I break the eyes contact we have and continue to stare down. "I-I'm s-so s-s-sor-ry" I whimper, I want to tell her, I really do, but I can't risk Liza's life like that.

I feel her arms around me and relax. I need my mother, the others might've gotten along without theirs, but I still need mine, I would be dead without her...well I never would've been born, but you know what I mean.

My mother kisses my cheek and murmurs its ok before turning around and swiftly leaving, leaving me alone to retire to my own thoughts.

There is no evidence that proves that I didn't cut myself, unless I caused Gordon to bleed, which I highly doubt. Also, based on where I dropped my kunai, it would probably be drenched in my blood, even the family kunai emblem will be covered in blood, which is a good thing, can't have people knowing my heritage.

I subtly close my eyes and take a deep breath. I finally allow my body to fully relax, and slowly doze off, into a dream filled with my fears, fears of which I will not think about because I fear even the thought of them. I then understand what is happening; my sanity is slowly slipping away, all because of the man in the dark...

**Author's Notes:**

**Well, that was the chapter. *tear drop* I feel bad for Espio, I might not be one of his fangirls, but I love him. I also have been quite negligent. I might have told you I was making this a trilogy, but for those who don't know, that was my amazing surprise. I already even have them planned out. Oh I can't wait! However, we should wait to see how this ends, there are many different types of trilogies, and you haven't the slightest clue which type this is, or maybe you do. However, reply, I need incentive to keep going.**


	9. The Storm is Brewing'

'The Storm is Brewing'

Waking up this morning is something I truthfully don't want to do. My cuts ached, and I could easily tell that my entire body is sore. However, the doctor or nurse who is shaking doesn't seem to notice, more or less care, so he or she just continued. "Aargh," I let out a groan of pain as I finally open my eyes.

I expect to see piercing lights hitting my eyes, but instead, the room is dull, just barely lit. I turn my head slightly, trying to get blood flowing through my body, and I am not shocked when I hear cracking sounds coming from my neck. Once I have gotten the blood flowing through my veins again, I look over to the nurse standing beside me.

"Good morning Espio-san," she greets happily, "Good morning Kankoshi-san," I reply. The nurse smiles as she places a tray of food in front of me, and presses a button to release my arms.

I look at the plate of food in front of me, and immediately pick up the sole apple on the plate. I will eat the porridge later…maybe.

"Well Espio, you seem to be recovering nicely. However, you might need to spend some time in the hospital. Those are quite a few cuts you have there, also the concussion, amnesia, and probably therapy…" The nurse informs me. I choke on my apple at the mention of the last thing, "Therapy?" I manage to sputter out after a while.

The nurse smiles sadly at me. "You must've been extremely unstable to have done all of this to yourself." I sigh realizing that everyone still believes that I have done this to myself, and I just nod at what she says.

"Good," the nurse says in a cheerier voice. "Admitting that you have a problem is the first step in solving it." She continues, and I am slowly losing my temper, it's not that I blame hear, it's just that I am stuck here for something that I didn't really do.

"Well, Espio-san…I will be back a bit later after your therapy session." Kankoshi-san says politely. I nod sweetly, and watch as she leaves the room. Once she is gone I growl under my breath, baring my canines at the non-existent person. I then let out a sigh, before resting my head back onto the pillow. This is definitely going to be a tough day.

I sit in silence, slowly consuming the rest of my apple. After about thirty minutes or so, someone else walks into the room. He then takes one of the seats and just sits there watching me. I feel awkward, as I still munch on my apple, every now and then peering over my shoulder to check and see if the guy is still staring at me. Once I finish my so called breakfast, I filly acknowledge the man with a bow of my head.

The man stands up, and well, this is actually the first time I pay attention to what he looks like. He seems to be a blue tiger with white stripes. His eyes are a startling red that deeply contrast with the color of his fur. His bangs are also bright blue, you know, that blue that overly dramatic artists use to paint the ocean, and sometimes the sky, with those same pure white stripes, not a single strand of hair or fur out of place. The man wears a blank expression, and as for real clothes, all I can see is the normal white lab coat, khaki pants, and black shoes that everyone else hear seems to wear.

Said man walks over towards me, and holds out his hand. I cautiously shake it and the man smiles and introduces himself. "Hello, I am Dr. Stork," the man said in an annoyingly cheerful voice. I glare at him in return, giving him the shortest way to answer a proper meeting, "Espio." And I guess that there is slightly more venom in my voice then intended, because the guys backs off immediately.

"So, Espio…hmm…what do we have here…a case of self-harm," Dr. Stork says, thumbing through the notes that other doctors have written up. I nod my head in agreement, even though I already know that this was all a lie.

"So, Espio, how's life been to you of late?" The doctor asks me. I think for a minute before answering, "A bitch." The doctor seems slightly taken aback by my response. However, after the initial shock wears off, he starts writing something down. I don't even try and see what it is though, because I already know that for the most part it's what I am saying or what he can guess by my body language. I mean this guy is too obvious, I can see everything written on his face.

"And why do you think life has been so 'cruel' to you?" The doctor asks, making air quotes around the word cruel. I roll my eyes, but I already have an answer, "Because my life was too good from before and they just wanted to make my life much worse," I reply halfheartedly.

The doctor writes this down, "So, how has your life been good?" Dr. Stork asks. I glare at him, but take a deep breath instead, trying to calm down my rage. "I don't know," I reply simply. Dr. Stork raises an eyebrow, but then goes back through the notes he already has. "I'm sorry; I forgot that you are suffering from amnesia." The doctor replies, actual sorrow showing up on his face.

"So…how do you feel about having amnesia?" The doctor asks. I growl at the plain stupidity of the question. "Well, like any normal person, I hate it," I reply, not even trying to hide my hatred for this doctor. Dr. Stork just continued to scribble down his notes, which honestly is starting to get on my nerves.

"Do you think that you are taking your anger about having amnesia out on yourself, or do you even think that you are overreacting slightly?" The doctor asks, a small smile reappearing on his face. I remain silent, unsure of how to answer it, and still sound, or at least keep the upper hand. That's right, I'm going to let my pride get in the way of me answering the question!

The doctor's smile widens when he realizes that I am completely stumped. "So, tell me Espio, why would you cut up your entire body, and more importantly carve 'the Storm is brewing' on your chest?"

I just sit there, I didn't even know that there are words carved into me. Damn you Gordon, you are going to pay for this with your life!

However, right now that's not the problem. I need to find a way to get rid of the doctor, and the best way to do that is by just agreeing with the putrid man. "I don't know. I just overreacted.' I respond, pretending to look shameful. As for my pride, man it just took a huge blow.

The doctor smiled…man this guy is stupid. "Okay Espio, since you seem slightly annoyed, I will leave for now. You still however need some anger management classes, so I will be seeing you tomorrow. As for now, I suggest you get some rest." And with that the man left. I guess he isn't as stupid as he thinks…kinda sucks doesn't it.

A deep breath escapes my lips as I relax back into the bed, and somewhat close my eyes. "The Storm is brewing," I murmur under my breath, resorting to talking to myself to help deal with my problems. "What does that even mean, and why would he carve that onto my abdomen?" I think aloud.

I keep pondering through my thoughts for a moment longer, before the door whips open, and Liza storms into the room, closely followed by Gordon. Gordon looks at me with a satisfied smirk on his face, while Liza has her arms wrapped around me in a death grip, annoying me as to how I could do something like this to myself. I kind of ignore her, and more so focus on glaring at Gordon.

Gordon however is glaring at Liza, so I use what little strength that isn't being used to repair my body to push the girl off of me. Liza looks hurt by my actions, and I can see tears starting to well up in her large emerald orbs. I can't look her in the eye or else I know that I will succumb to the fact that I just hurt the girl I…nope, no feelings for her. If I have feelings for her then I am putting her life on the line.

"I'm sorry Liza, y-you were just hugging me too tightly," I lie to her. Liza lights up a bit, but then her face immediately goes back to the one of being depressed.

"Well, you wouldn't be in this position if you hadn-" "I know." I cut the girl off in mid speech, my irritation showing in my voice. Liza once again looks taken slightly aback, but she just sighs.

I look over to that stupid corner that Gordon is cowering in…well standing in…and see the guy trying to retain his laughter. I want to just go up to him and wring his neck, however, if I try to move my body it will result in insufferable pain, and why make myself go through that?

"So, how are things going at home?" I ask trying to change the topic. Liza's mood however doesn't brighten up at all, au contraire; she seems to be even more depressed then before.

"We have had quite a few more kidnappings, people keep disappearing, and everyone is getting apprehensive. As for your friends, The Bride has found out that Knuckles is lying about his father watching Angel Island, and she has learned that he is dead, so they are being sent back to Angel Island to monitor the Master Emerald." Liza explains. I visibly tense when Liza says that Knuckles' father is dead, I don't recall that. Well I guess there is a lot of things that I can't remember, but I would hope that something that big would be permanently etched into my memory.

Liza seems to notice that I tense and she sighs. "Your memory will slowly come back and you will remember everything soon, that's what the doctors say." I scoff, what do doctors know, they still haven't been able to discover who really did this to me, so how can I trust them to find anything else out.

"Thank you for the update Liza," I say with a smile, in a way that tells her that I need to do some thinking. Liza easily picks up on my message and starts walking to the door, motioning for Gordon to follow her. Liza walks out of the door, but Gordon walks over to me.

"So, did you get my message?" The orange chameleon basically sneers. I growl and he just laughs. "And remember our little deal." He reminds me through his laughter. Another growl escapes my lips before he leaves the room, once again leaving me to my thoughts, and I only have one thought running through my head.

I want his head on a silver platter.

**Author's Notes:**

**Wow, it's been an entire month since I have updated this story, and that's creepy because this is my fastest updating Sonic story. **

**This chapter was actually pretty hard for me to write, and that's because I really didn't want to write the therapy session, however, once I started, I learned that it was extremely fun to write.**

**Lastly, I should say that this is one of the last chapters of this story. That's right, this story is coming to a close pretty quickly, I guess that's because I want to add to the effect of this story, but yes, this story is coming to a close pretty quickly.**

**Review please!**


	10. The end, for now

A scream erupts from my throat as I wake up, breathing heavily again… This is the third time within the last week that I have been awoken by a nightmare, only to not remember what the important details of said nightmare are. The only thing that keeps coming to mind when I try to reminisce in said nightmares is a blue chameleon, once as a Mobian, and the other time as a robot.

I swing my feet over the side of the bed, and I get up and walk over to the window, staring out at the many people below. The sun shines bright in the sky, and not a single cloud can be seen. I smile, it all seems like the perfect day and even better, once someone comes to pick me up, and I'll be out of here, for good.

I start pacing around the room, my mind still trying to make out what keeps replaying in my mind. The only thing that goes through my mind however is Gordon, and what he has done to me, and what he will do to Liza if I tell anyone what has happened.

A nurse finally appears in the room, a single tray with an apple and a glass of milk perched atop in her hands. I take the tray from the nurse and thank her as she leaves the room. I then take the apple into my own hand and take a large bite out of the fruit. Juices from the apple run down my chin, and they make their ways to my chest.

My attention immediately goes to the gauze wrapped tightly around my abdomen, and the fact that I am getting if off today. I hope I don't have any scars, I mean, why would I want a message on my chest that I still haven't figured out.

'The Storm is brewing.' I mean, isn't that an old saying, so that's all it should mean, something bad is on its way, but what is it? Why did Gordon carve it into my chest? Is he working for some form of a higher entity? What if he is? Who is this other person?

More thoughts go through my mind as I continue eating my apple. There is a small knock at the door, and I make my way towards the door and open it.

"Good morning Espio," my therapist says in his gruff voice. I nod towards the man in a form of a greeting. He then moves to take his seat on the chair, and I move to take my seat on the bed, a small smile on my face.

"So, are you happy about finally getting to go home?" Dr. Stork asks happily, and for once I can match his enthusiasm. I nod happily, and Dr. Stork just smiles.

"Are you going to hurt yourself anymore?" Dr. Stork asks again, and I finally realize that he is talking to me like an adult does when trying to teach a five year old something. I roll my eyes, but shake my head afterwards, I mean this way, I still get to eat my apple.

"Good." Dr. Stork says to me, before digging his hand into his coat pocket and pulling out a small medicine bottle.

"You told me you were having problems sleeping, and I even came in to monitor your sleep, there is definitely something wrong. However, after a bit on analyzing, and talking to the bride of your clan, we were able to determine that these recurring nightmares are seeds of your past. So, we decided to give you these, I can't say that they will help with the nightmares, but it will help so that you aren't talking and screaming out everything that has happened in the past to everyone while you are asleep." The doctor explains handing me a small bottle of sleeping pills. I take the tiny bottle and read the ingredients, I then shake the bottle, plop a pill into my hand and examine it. I mean, living in the Dragon Kingdom, and being part of a clan, just about everyone is an enemy.

The doctor chuckles at my antics. "It's not poisoned, all doctors are Free People, and each clan has a section of the hospital with nurses from their clan." The doctor explains, and it just proves how naïve the Free People can be. The clans are skilled fighters and sneaks, I mean the Gossamer, Raiju, and Shinobi are all ninja clans. The Yagyu, are something like ninjas, they insult the tradition of the ninja, but they are master thieves and assassins. Any clan can easily break into another's headquarters, I mean, ours isn't even invisible. Ugh, do they really underestimate our skill to that extent. Probably.

"Thank you doctor," I finally say after checking the pills to make sure not poisoned in any way. I put the pills on my bedside table, and then turn my attention back to the doctor. The doctor seems to be studying me closely, and I am about to voice my opinion when he finally speaks.

"Another doctor will be here in about ten minutes to remove the gauze and inform you about the state of the injuries." Dr. Stork informs me before leaving the room. I simply lay back in my bed, my mind racing.

Another doctor enters the room ten minutes later just like Dr. Stork predicted. This one however is a female mongoose with yellowish orange fur; her hair is jet black and crimped in the back, her eyes are purple and so is her eye shadow. She looks a bit young, and well, I just don't trust her.

"Hello, I am Dr. Melanie." The doctor says, holding her hand out for me to shake. I shake the woman's hand. "I was the one to take care of you when you were fist brought here." The woman explains, and I suddenly understand why everyone thinks that I did this to myself.

"Well, if you will lie down, I will remove your bandages." The mongoose tells me, and I do as she says, quite reluctantly.

I see her grab her scissors and all of my muscles freeze up. The woman takes the scissors, and she slowly snips away at the bandages, ever so slowly removing each layer.

Finally she gets to the last layer, and she snips it away. I then feel her cold glove fingers on my stomach and I wince.

"Well, you've definitely healed, the only thing that's left is the message you carved into yourself. Don't worry though; it should clear up in about a week." The doctor explains, and I put up a false smile to reassure her.

She then pulls out another roll of gauze, and she wraps me up in a surprisingly skillful manner. Once I am done my mother walks into the room, and the doctor walks out, you haven't the slightest clue how happy I am to know that my mother is here. I hug her, and she smiles. "I found out who did this to you." She says softly, and I freeze.

"Gordon will go to trial in about a month." She further explains, and I feel myself ready to explode.

"Mom! We made a deal! He's going to take Liza," I basically shriek. My mother sighs and holds me close, she doesn't apologize though, no nothing of the sort.

**Line**

We soon return to the caves to see a party in progress. The minute I walk in, Gordon flashes me a toothy grin, and my heart sinks. I already know what that grin means, it means game over, it means, the end, you lose. I chase him, only to be restrained by a couple of guards and earn myself a bunch of crazy glares. I would've said something, but I didn't need to earn any more distrust or anything like that.

I try to go on with my day as if nothing has happened, but the thought of Liza keeps niggling me from the back of my mind. I need to get to Gordon, I need to think of a way to tell him what I really think. I slowly stalk towards the Gordon and some sky blue chameleon he is talking to, but when the female that he is talking to notices me, she gives me a sad smile.

"Hey Espio, you probably don't remember me, but we used to go to preschool together, in fact, I was in yous class. Gordon was just telling me what happened, and all I really wanna know is why? Wh did you do this? You were, are, the best ninja in our entire age group." The female says, a small grunt from Gordon. I tilt my head towards the female in a questioning manner, and the girls eyees widen when she realizes what her mistake was.

"Sorry, I'm Victoria." She says holding out her hand, I take it and shake it formally, the girl just smiles at me.

"Well, Victoria, I'd hate to be rude, but I really need to talk to Gordon alone for a while." I say in as sweet a voice as I can muster because I am honestly pissed. Victoria simply nods and walks away, I then turn to glare at a smirking chameleon.

"So, what do you think. I was only accused yesterday, but, it was extremely easy to get rid of her. I mean she does almostt anything I ask. All I had to do was ask her to come with me." Gordon sneers. I growl, and use all my might to not just grab him and strangle him to death.

"Calm down, I didn't kill her." Gordon says patting my head, I want to grab his arm and break it, but I can't. Gordon snickers, continuing his patting of my head.

"You're gay." Is all that I say through clenched teeth before turning and walking away.

**Liza's P.O.V**

It's dark, and I am in a world of pain. I haven't the slightest clue where I am, or why I am even here. Did I do something wrong? Did I somehow cross the Bride or her son?

These questions swirl around in my mind for a while as I try to make sense of everything. Suddenly, a searing pain goes across my chest, and I hear someone shout "Look up," rather harshly. I do so, and all I see is a dark silhouette.

"Good." The voice coos, and I shiver, trying to get away from the scary voice, only to realize that I am chained to my spot. The person laughs at me, and my pathetic attempts to escape, but I keep trying, because giving up is for the weak.

Another searing pain and I force my eyes shut so that I don't scream. Another whip hits me, and I realize just how bad of a tactic that is. The scream that erupts from my throat is loud, and it is burning my throat. I guess I haven't spoken in quite a while, well, it's time to start now.

"Who are you?" I ask, and I don't even get a straight forward answer, coward.

"I am the answer to the riddle." Is the measly answer I get? I don't continue to fight anymore, I am just hit again. Where are Espio and Gordon now that I need them?

**Author's Notes:**

**This chapter sucks, and it's the last one. I am so sorry for leaving you all with such a short chapter, but I wanted things to be kind of ominous, so this is what you get.**

**Please tell me what you guys think, and after that, can you take the poll on my page to choose my next story. That is also where you will find minor information about this stories sequel.**

**Updated: 18 September 2012**

**Oh, and who knows the riddle and it's answer.**


	11. The Sequel

**Author's Notes:**

**OMFG! It's finally here, after a couple months of waiting the amazing sequel to **_**Starting All Over**_**! I have been waiting for the right moment of inspiration to continue this series, and when my dad told me he would take the to the comic shop to get the compete Sonic Encyclopedia; I guess it came, along with some further inspiration for the trilogy and the ending to my first sonic story series. Well, here you have it…**

It has been a while since the group has arrived back at Angel Island. Well, the group minus Espio that is. Espio is currently at home, living with his clan, slowly trying to regain his memory which he had lost in a fight against Eggman, well more so parts of the Dark Legion working alongside with Eggman, but at this point in time that is not important.

"I miss Espio…it's so noisy here without him." Charmy whines, much to the annoyance of Vector who was trying to simply listen to music and relax, for once in a while. However, Vector's annoyed groan goes completely ignored as both Knuckles and Mighty jump up and try to help Charmy calm down, however, their efforts are proven futile, because they all know that Charmy responds best to Espio.

"I'm sorry Charmy, but Espio is gone and is getting help." Knuckles replies to the sniggering of Mighty who obviously took that the inappropriate way.

"Shut up Mighty." Knuckles says rather harshly. Mighty's face immediately pales before going straight again, and Ray who had been sitting silently on his lap giggles softly.

"Well, there's nothing to do, so I'm going to go tour the island." Vector says, getting up from his seat and making his way to the door. Knuckles sighs, but doesn't say anything else, instead he just nods to his friend and looks back to Charmy who is sitting on the couch disheartened.

"He'll be back soon." Saffron says her arms wrapped tightly around her fiancé. Charmy nods, though anyone can tell that the nod is only half-hearted and that Charmy has decided to stop talking and listening altogether.

The silence in the room slowly grew heavier and denser, up to the point in which it was suffocating and people were hurrying to escape the room. The first to leave was Mighty, quickly followed by Ray who was simply flying behind him. After a couple of moments, Knuckles and Julie-Su walk out of the room as casually as they can, simply leaving Charmy and Saffron in the room, Charmy still moping over the loss of his "older brother" and Saffron trying to cheer him up, not noticing the fact that she was being blatantly ignored.

A sudden scream jumps the two out of their stupor, and both quickly buzz out of the room to see the entire Chaotix, without Espio, being held hostage by the Destructix, a cruel smile on Lightning's face as he stood at the head of the group.

"I'm looking for a friend, do you think you can find him, he doesn't seem to be here right now." Lightning says, his smile harsher than before.

A small gasp escapes Charmy's mouth as he surveys his closest friends, taking in how each and every one of them is being restrained in some way, shape, or form.

"We aren't telling you where Espio is." Knuckles says through gritted teeth having a mild understanding of what the clan wars is about, and how it works.

"Oh, I already know he's with the Shinobi Clan, I just need to know where in the mountains they are located." Lightning sneers, a wicked smile placed on his face.

"We don't know. We had to wear blindfolds going there and back." Mighty admits, but then smiles when he realizes that he has just slowed down the Destructix.

"Well then, I guess we'll just have to keep you for a while won't we? I mean, certainly by keeping a hold on his little cronies we can draw the boy out of hiding." Lightning says before simply waving his arm.

"We shall be taking them, just bound and gag them, we'll get our pay." The lynx continues turning on his heel and motioning for the rest of the Destructix to follow.

The group sends questioning glances before simultaneously nodding that they should follow the lynx for the time being. So, the two bees along with the rest of the Chaotix is bound and gagged and thrown lazily onto a small plane like flying device, the group then clambers onto the little ship, Scourge and Fiona taking the pilots seats.

"Why are we listening to him and this old bat?" Fiona asks, once the two are out of earshot.

Scourge smirks wickedly, a plan already forming in the back of his mind. "Well, if we do what this old bat says, for nothing in return, then she owes us."

Fiona lets out a cold laugh, "And what makes you think she will keep up her end of the bargain?" The fox asks a look of utter disgust on her face.

Scourge continues smirking, already understanding how people in the Dragon Kingdom work. "Well, if we get her word of honor, then she'll have to repay us. And either way, this is Sonic's main back up team, and your biggest threat, with them out of the way, Angel Island is open and the Master Emerald is free for the taking."

Fiona's mouth twitches upward in a wicked smiling, understanding just how much they are doing by simply ridding Angel Island of their enemies.

The Destructix finally landing in the Dragon Kingdom quickly remove their still seething captives and take them into the large building that is the home to the Raiju Clan. The group drags their prisoners inside as Lightning goes through all of the formal stuff with The Bride of Conquering Storm.

The Destructix stood cockily in the middle of the building, looking around at the training ninjas as if they were the ones in charge and not the bride.

After a moment of standing though, the group is met by the Bride herself, who looks at them with disgust evident on her face.

"Where is…the chameleon?" She asks, looking at a nervous looking Lightning. Lightning takes a step backward, his eyes wide with fear at what his Bride might do to him for failing his mission.

"He-he wasn't there. Yo-you see, he's at home…with the rest of the Shinobi." Lightning says, looking away.

Storm looks back at the prisoners and sighs. "Then these are his closest friends. Fine, I guess they will have to do, won't they. Gordon –Lightning growls – take them down to the dungeons." Gordon drops down from above and lands perfectly behind Fiona. He swiftly moves the Destructix out of the way and simply grabs the Chaotix, puts an energy bond to bind their hands together and simply drags them forward.

As soon as the chameleon leaves Conquering Storm looks back to the group who helped her acquire more prisoners. "So, how do you want your payment? Of course, it might have to be lowered for not actually getting the Shinobi Clan spy; however, I am sure we will be able to negotiate a deal."

Scourge scoffs, "What do you mean our payment will be lowered? We had to steal them and drag them over hear, and we had to listen to Lightning, like hell we better be paid properly for our works."

Conquering Storm laughs, much to the dismay of Scourge. "What the hell are you laughing at woman?!" Scourge yells through gritted teeth, Fiona moving slightly behind him, either to suppress him, or whisper words of encouragement to fuel him onwards.

"You listened to him, that pathetic form of a being." Storm says, speaking as though Lightning weren't listening to the conversation at all, and he wasn't slowly becoming depressed upon hearing his uselessness. "Well, why should I pay you for your own stupidity?" Storm asks, not even paying attention to any of the others.

"Well… you know what woman, I like your way of thinking. Call me, we should work together sometime." Scourge says an evil smile on his face.

"Well, that will come sooner then you expect." Storm says another smile still on her face. "I could use your help obliterating a few…enemies." Storm continues before walking away.

"Gordon, go fetch them their rings." Storm commands, making her way back to her form of a throne.

Gordon quickly reappears, once again out of nowhere and hands a pile of rings to Scourge. He then bows and quickly disappears. Scourge smirks before turning and making his way towards the exit, the rest of the Destructix following.

"_Phase one, complete." _

The moment that Knuckles and the Chaotix were chained to the wall everyone started pulling at their restraints, not surprised when the ones on Mighty, Vector, and Knuckles restraints came loose easily.

Mighty and Vector immediately move to loosen the restraints on the other members of the Chaotix, however, Knuckles notices a silhouette of something off on the other side of the cell. The echidna moves slowly making his way over to the lump, hearing the harsh breathing from the lump over in the corner.

As he makes his way over, the shadows start clearing away from his line of vision, allowing him to see a pink, red, black, and blue lump that looked somewhat familiar. Moving slowly he finally makes is way to the immobile body and gently the body, just a tad so that the face becomes visible.

A loud gasp escapes his lips as he sees the gruesome face of…

"_Liza…"_

**Author's Notes:**

**Here it is. The beginning of the second part of the three part trilogy has begun. Next chapter we visit Espio, and we learn what is home to our favorite chameleon. We also now learn who works for who and what is going on.**

**PLEASE REVIEW AND VOTE ON MY POLL! AND ALSO, GIVE SUPPORT TO THOSE WHO SUFFERED DURING SANDY. I SUFFERED TOO, BUT SOME OF THEM ARE CONTINUING TO SUFFER.**


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